


Broken Fate

by xOceanWhispersx



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: But those are later in the story, Especially with how much StarClan can do, How To Ruin a Prophecy In 60 Seconds, I dunno how to tag, Kinda violent deaths, Reincarnation, RiverClan (Warriors), ShadowClan (Warriors), So say one area of territory is in a different direction than what I wrote, StarClan (Warriors), ThunderClan (Warriors), Vague birth stuff in the first chapter, Warning: I take a LOT of liberties with how things work, WindClan (Warriors), any major character death is later on, camp descriptions too, fight cats, i also take some liberties with the territory and stuff, if that's gross, kit death???, meow, stuff like that
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-06
Updated: 2018-06-12
Packaged: 2019-05-19 02:35:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 26,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14865032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xOceanWhispersx/pseuds/xOceanWhispersx
Summary: Sunkit is an unusually bitter kit residing in StarClan- after an unfortunate event that caused his death, he rested in StarClan's wonderful hunting grounds with pure anger raging inside his heart. He wanted the chance to be a warrior!When a situation occurs that allows him to slip through the cracks, he finds himself faced with an opportunity to have the second chance he so desired- swiping it up without thought, he snagged the opportunity, and was reborn.Little did he know, he chose the kitten that had been destined in prophecy to save the Clans from falling apart as a whole. The kitten destined to prevent the deaths of every cat. All Sunkit wanted was a second chance, but now he has to fix his vital mistake and carry out what was destined.But he's /not/ the cat that was destined to do this.Will the Clans die out after all, now that he's completely broken what fate had laid out?





	1. Allegiances

**Author's Note:**

> Hiya! I hope you all enjoy this story- the only thing I own is the characters and plot!  
> The whole purpose of this story is to get me to ACTUALLY COMPLETE something long-term for once. So it may not be the most perfect sometimes. I'll try not to rush!  
> Feedback is appreciated!

**ThunderClan**

**Leader:** Lilystar - Sleek, pale silver tabby tom

 **Deputy:** Ospreyclaw - Black and white cat with a long scar down their underbelly and back leg

 **Medicine Cat:** Juniperwish - Dark grey she-cat

**Warriors:**

Birchflight- Pale brown tabby tom with a white chest

Briartalon- Thick furred dark brown tabby tom

Goldensplash- Warm golden she-cat with darker golden legs and eye splotches

Thorntooth- Dim grey tom with overgrown teeth

Icewhisker- Light grey, nearly white she-cat with heavily torn ears

 **Apprentice-** Milkpaw (Cream and white tom)

Turtlefrost- Tortoiseshell she-cat with large white splotches

Hawklily- Dilute tortoiseshell she-cat

Dapplebeam- Old calico she-cat

 **Apprentice-** Hailpaw (Dark grey tom with darker grey 'freckles' all over his pelt, former rogue)

Mousestep- Short grey tabby tom

Sandpelt- Golden tabby tom with a limp hind leg

Yarrowtail- Brown tabby she-cat

Poppy- Dark grey tabby she-cat, former rogue

Gorseflower- Dark cream she-cat

Frostpool- White tom

**Queens:**

Mosswillow- Pale orange she-cat with darker orange markings streaking her pelt (Expecting)

　

**RiverClan**

**Leader:** Creekstar - Grey-blue tom

 **Deputy:** Minnowshine- Silver grey she-cat with light tabby streaks

 **Medicine Cat:** Rushfern- Mud brown tabby tom **(Apprentice** : Berrypaw - Small russet tom)

**Warriors:**

Streampebble- Dark grey tabby she-cat

Troutleap- Dark brown tabby tom with flecks of white

Cloverfish- Dark grey, nearly black, she-cat

Mistecho- White, deaf tom

Fishflank- Pale grey tom with darker flanks

 **Apprentice:** Shorepaw (Sand colored she-cat with flecks of brown)

Reedwhisper: Pale brown tabby she-cat

 **Apprentice:** Webpaw (Black and white tom)

Sandfur- Dark brown tabby tom with sandy colored markings

Stonecry- Fierce dark grey tom

**Queens:**

Nightstream- Dark grey she-cat (Expecting)

Puddlewhisker- Thick furred white and brown dappled she-cat (Kits: Barkkit- Pale brown tom with darker brown stripes and Willowkit- White she-cat with dark grey paws)

**Elders:**

Currentstripe- Grey tom with ragged fur

Stormwind- Dilute tortoiseshell she-cat with ragged fur

　

**WindClan**

**Leader:** Hopstar - Brown she-cat with a stumpy tail

 **Deputy:** Breezepool- Blue-grey tom

 **Medicine Cat:** Leapwhisker- Brown she-cat with a darker brown face and paws ( **Apprentices:** Pouncepaw- Pale grey tom and Lilacpaw- Pale grey she-cat with darker grey tabby markings)

**Warriors:**

Moorflight- Sandy-brown tom

Rabbitblossom- Small grey she-cat

Heathersky- Sunset orange she-cat with a white tail

 **Apprentice:** Gorsepaw (Black tom)

Darkfoot- Grey tabby tom with a single dark grey paw

Harewind- Heavily scarred white tom

 **Apprentice:** Tunnelpaw (Dark brown she-cat)

Kestrelshine- Dark ginger tabby tom

Snowleap- Pale white she-cat

Mudface- White tom with a brown splotched face

Specklebreeze- Black and white speckled she-cat

Doestorm- Pale brown tabby she-cat

Ambercloud- Brown tabby tom with white dapples

 **Apprentice:** Echopaw (Red-ginger tom)

　

**ShadowClan**

**Leader:** Needlestar - Grey tom with darker grey streaks

 **Deputy:** Pinestep - Dark brown tabby tom

 **Medicine Cat:** Redbark- Russet brown tom

**Warriors:**

Lizardstreak- Sandy, almost cream she-cat with white streaks

Snakefang- Dark grey tabby tom with an overgrown tooth

 **Apprentice:** Hawkpaw (Pale grey tom)

Cedarbranch- Pale brown tabby tom

Howlthroat- Dark brown tabby tom with a booming voice

Maplepelt- Tortoiseshell she-cat

 **Apprentice:** Dapplepaw (Calico tom)

Marshclaw- Black tom

Blossom- Brown and white dappled she-cat, former kittypet

 **Apprentice:** Clawpaw (White she-cat)

Ivystalk- Silver grey tabby tom

Morningpetal- Cream tom

Spottedwish- Tortoiseshell tom

Fawnheart- Pale brown she-cat with white speckles

**Queens:**

Ravenbranch- Black and grey she-cat with a long, ragged fur tail (KIts: Darkkit- Dark grey she-kit, Spiderkit- Black tom and Flowerkit: Pale silver tabby she-kit with darker grey flecks)

**Elders:**

Palegaze- Blind light brown tom


	2. A Bitter Spirit

Sunkit felt his small white paws sink into the bitterly warm, marshy ground below him, the cream kit's pelt ruffled lightly as his soft, round face twisted in what looked like anger- so unfitting for a kit. A kit who had stars speckling his pelt, a kit who had everything he could want- bountiful prey, endless sunshine, and unending affection from the cats around him. The other StarClan kits even tussled with him- softly battering his white belly fur in delight.

Sunkit supposed he should feel safe. Safe and comfortable and at peace. He shouldn't have a dark, burning resentment lashing at his chest. He was so dreadfully small that the anger seemed to outgrow him, go beyond his physical limits. A kit as young as he should not have held such fury and venom, but every time he thought of his circumstances or saw the stars glittering on his own fur, he felt hot bile rise in his fluffy throat.

_"There's nothing I can do for him," the gruff voice came from the towering, reddish tom as he shook his head solemnly. His green eyes were horribly dim, and a dark acceptance loomed over his shoulders. "He is very, very ill. And small. If he were bigger, he would be able to fight this off, but my herbs are doing nothing."_

_"Please," the desperate whisper stuttered out of the sand and white she-cat crouched beside the weak, foul smelling lump of fur that was her son, curled up pathetically in a dirty nest that smelled of fever and bile. Her eyes were filled with exhaustion and grief, and tears were forming in her wide eyes. "Please. I need him, he can't die! He's my son, I can't lose him!"_

_"There is nothing I can do. He's as good as gone, Lizardstreak."_

_"P-please! Try something, anything!"_

_"I've tried everything. Feverfew, lavender, even chervil to soothe the pain. I've mixed in watermint, juniper berries...the list goes on and on. The yarrow didn't work to make the twoleg poison leave him. He's gone."_

_"Redbark, please!" A desperate wail came from the distressed mother, which roused the cream and white kit in the foul nest, his breaths rattling deep within his small chest. His paws reached out weakly for his mother, his vision foggy and murky with fever. The she-cat let out a grief laced choke and scooted closer, wrapping a paw around her frail kit and bringing him to her chest. He shivered and pressed into the warmth, head aching. Everything hurt. His belly was constantly hit with a cascade of stabbing pains, and his chest seemed to refuse to allow him to breathe, causing a great pressure in his sinuses and body. He whimpered weakly, throat hoarse from vomitting._

_"Hang in there, Sunkit..." Lizardstreak whispered shakily, tongue coming down to gently groom the fur between the kit's ears. The tom kit tried to relax in his mother's warmth, but the pain was too much. He panted wearily. Was he going to be okay? Was Redbark going to keep trying to fix him? At this point he missed the bitter tang of the piles of herbs that had been given to him._

_Sunkit turned his head weakly when he saw a red-brown paw push next to his sore muzzle, and when it lifted, he saw a tightly bound green bundle. Lizardstreak looked up at the medicine cat, who avoided her gaze._

_"I'll keep trying," the medicine cat mumbled out, and he nodded to the she-cat. "I know you don't want to leave him, but it's getting late. Go get Clawkit settled in."_

_"But-"_

_"Then come back. I'm sure Sunkit would prefer to have you sleep next to him." The ShadowClan medicine cat dipped his head, and Sunkit lapped tenderly at the bundle of herbs in front of his face._

_Lizardstreak looked extremely hesitant, but after a moment the she-cat got up, knowing her other kit needed to get settled down for the night. "I'll be back, Sunkit. Hold on, okay?"_

_Sunkit just shuddered in response, whimpering when his mother hesitantly left the dark den, leaving his awful nest cold. He wished he could smell the milky, comforting scent of his mother, but he couldn't even manage a breath through his nose._

_"Go ahead and eat the herbs," Redbark quietly murmured, and Sunkit licked at them again, whimpering. "It's feverfew with some poppy seeds to help you sleep wrapped inside."_

_Sunkit weakly forced open his maw, and the thin kit slowly began digging in to the bitter herbs. Redbark kept looking away, frowning, and his eyes held a dark presence that seemed unreadable._

_After a few moments, Sunkit noticed in one mouthful, something round and juicy was wrapped in the leaves. Sunkit didn't know what it was- he had never tasted it before, and when he bit down, sweet juice that slowly turned sour and began to burn his throat filled his mouth. He struggled to swallow it, but once he did he finished up the feverfew and lapped up the poppy seeds, mewling when his mother reentered._

_Lizardstreak gently curled around him and began grooming his ruffled pelt. The poppy seeds did their work, and just as a strange, burning pain was joining the fever pains in his stomach, he passed out, his last breaths rustling his mother's chest fur. Distantly, he wondered if he would be better in the morning._

_When he awoke in StarClan, Sunkit wailed. He wailed and wailed and cried as cats wove around him sympathetically._

_He only learned a few days later that Redbark had fed him a deathberry, presumably to end his suffering._

_He had only been three moons old._

Sunkit paced and paced in the starlit marshland, feeling an intense, heated wave of anger at Redbark. Surely he could of hung on with his last bit of energy and made it through! Why had the tom killed him?! Lizardstreak should of never left the den, she surely would of noticed that something was wrong with the herb bundle-!

"Hey, Sunkit!" A soft squeal sounded behind the cream and white tom kit, and he was ripped from his thoughts as he whipped around, staring at the speckled grey kit in front of him. Cloudkit. "Why ya moping?"

"Go away," Sunkit curled his tiny lip and lashed his equally tiny tail. He should of grown up to be a fine warrior! Perhaps his name would of been...Sunbattler! Sunclaw? Sunstar! If he had become leader, he would exile Redbark, and-!

"Sheesh," Cloudkit flicked her whiskers and purred, the star speckled she-kit weaving around Sunkit, her blue eyes bright. "I just wanted to say I have some AWESOME news!"

"What?" Sunkit flicked his tail in annoyance, feeling a small twinge of guilt that Cloudkit was just trying to talk. But she wasn't bitter. They couldn't relate well. She didn't even seem to regret her death! Didn't she want to be a warrior?

"My mom's sister is having kits!" Cloudkit squealed, jumping up and down as soon as the words fell from her muzzle. "I think she's gonna name one after ME! Oh man, I love watching my family! Do you think one could be leader?"

Sunkit felt a fresh wave of bitterness overtake his delicate form. He could of been one of those kits, growing up healthy. Sure, they were in ThunderClan, not ShadowClan, but he could of become a warrior anyway!

"Wanna come watch?" Cloudkit squeaked. "Everyone's suuuuper excited! I don't really know why, but they are!"

"I don't know-"

"Come on!" Cloudkit nudged Sunkit so hard he nearly fell onto his paws. Grumbling, he steadied himself and began following the jumpy grey she-kit, feeling fury prickle at his paws. He would come with, if not to just mourn and wistfully watch as the kits suckled at their mother's belly, ready to grow into fine cats.

As Cloudkit led him out of the towering, starry pines, and into a vast clearing, the tom noticed that, indeed, the adult spirits were weaving around with urgent importance, and lots of them were mumbling about the birth. Finding this odd, Sunkit's ears swiveled, trying to pick up any string of conversation that would indicate why this particular kitting was of interest. But everything was hushed, and Sunkit couldn't pick up anything.

Cloudkit pushed past a few cats, and let out a loud purr as she stopped next to a towering, muscled ginger tom.

Sunkit pulled up next to her after brushing through the long grass, blinking at the vision cast in the starry pool of water in front of him. A pale orange she-cat with darker markings streaking her pelt was writhing in her nest, an echoing groan of pain heaving from her as she bit down harshly on a thick stick, a dark grey she-cat leaning over her attentively, front paws firmly placed at her back legs.

Sunkit winced at the swollen she-cat's rippling, convulsing belly as the kits curled within her awaited to be born. Why was Cloudkit so intent on watching? Yes, it was her kin, but this was disgusting. He thought back to his own birth, and frowned. Perhaps one of his kin in StarClan had watched Lizardstreak's birth, too.

"I hope she names one after me," Cloudkit whispered, the ginger tom next to her flicking his tail, eyes locked on the pool providing the vision. "If not, that's okay!"

The speckled grey she-kit eagerly continued on watching. Sunkit turned his head absentmindedly, snapping to attention when he saw a silver cat approaching, importance in their step. Sunkit watched out of the corner of his eye as cats moved away to make room for the new arrival, muttering ceasing. Cloudkit didn't seem to notice.

The silver cat headed towards where Sunkit and Cloudkit were, and the cream and white kit held his breath as the pale spirit moved up to stand beside him, eyes narrowed at the pool and the birthing she-cat. Sunkit noticed the kits were beginning to slide out, and he wrinkled his nose and gave all attention to the ancient spirit beside him.

The ginger tom next to Cloudkit dipped his head at the other spirit, and suddenly in a flash of purple light, the pool lit up. Without a word, the silver cat slipped in, and disappeared. Eyes wide in shock, Sunkit hardly noticed Cloudkit gasp in wonder. He watched as, in the vision, the spirit padded up to the birthing ginger molly. The dark grey she-cat did not notice them. Neither did the wailing she-cat.

_They're...in the living world?_

His chest pounded in a mock imitation of a heart beating, and the small kit watched as the ginger tom slipped into the pool next.

He had heard stories of situations like this happening- how when something important happened, StarClan cats would enter the living world for a brief time.

At the thought of the living world, Sunkit's fur bristled excitedly. Even it was for just the briefest of moments...

With the lack of reasoning that came with most young kits, Sunkit launched himself into the pool without really thinking. He heard alarmed gasps fill his ears, and Cloudkit's cry of shock, before that all ended with a loud whoosh of air.

Blinking rapidly, Sunkit looked around the dark area he was in, miniscule claws sliding out and gripping the soft, warm earth below him. Dazzled, he stepped back further into the shadows, jumping as a soft fern brushed against his star laced flank.

Ahead of him was the silver spirit and the ginger spirit. They hadn't noticed him, their gazes locked intently on the heaving, panting she-cat as her third and final kit slid from her belly. Her jaws slackened, and the splintered stick slipped from her muzzle, thumping dully against the ground.

_I'm...I'm here!_

Sunkit barely held in a gasp. The living world...he was here! Quietly, he watched the dark grey medicine cat lap at the kits along with the exhausted queen. Her ears twitched at the worried meows outside what had to be the nursery, and after a few moments the three kits began mewling. One was a beautiful golden tabby, pelt warm like honey. The second one was a dark red-ginger with faint white markings, and its fur looked like it would grow gloriously as the kit grew up. The last one was an extremely faint ginger, with lots of beautiful white patches.

"Good job," the medicine cat mumbled. "All three are healthy kits."

The queen shuddered weakly and nuzzled her kits closer, the mewling bundles squirming in the nest until they could latch onto a teat, suckling as soon as they discovered their source of milk. The queen laid back, and the medicine cat stepped back to the entrance of the nursery, seemingly to speak to the cats gathered outside.

The StarClan cats closed in then, standing above the queen and eagerly looking down upon the honey-gold tabby kitten. They nodded, muttered to one another, and touched their noses to the little kit's head, backing off after a moment. They confidently seemed to evaporate into the air, little stars glimmering in their wake for a moment.

Stunned, Sunkit nervously looked around, waddling up to the kits in wonder. He wanted to feel angry, angry that they weren't him, that he would never grow up like them, but they were just so...tiny. Even smaller than he.

A golden tabby tom suddenly entered, and Sunkit jerked harshly, as if caught. But the tom did not see him. He limped into the nursery, one back leg limp. His eyes glimmered proudly, and the she-cat looked up wearily, purring at the tom. They must be mates.

"They're...oh Mosswillow, they're so beautiful!" The tom crouched beside his mate, and Sunkit felt his white paws tremble as he sniffed at the kits.

With a sudden jolt, he flattened his ears, eyes going wide. He had heard stories...stories about cats who's spirits were so old they were brought back into the world, allowed to start a new life. Apparently, according to the tales, on special occasions, groups of spirits would be brought to newly birthed kittens, and supposedly they got a second chance.

Sunkit had not believed the stories. Mostly because he hadn't gotten a second chance, when he believed he deserved one! He could of LIVED! If Redbark hadn't _killed_ him!

Sunkit fidgeted a bit. This case _seemed_ special. For some reason, the StarClan cats had been focused on this particular litter. But surely if he hadn't been chosen...and the tales, they couldn't be real!

Feeling a bit bold, and ignoring the quiet chatting of the beaming new parents, Sunkit edged closer to the honey-gold tabby kit, which had attracted the attention of the StarClan cats. He stood over the kit for a moment, eyes stretching wide. What if it worked? What if he got a _second chance?_

It hadn't been that long since he died. Surely he could have another go...? He wasn't important in StarClan. Just another dead kit.

At that, absolute bitterness filled his heart. He stared down at the newborn kit below his paws. He deserved another chance! If this worked...

"Stop! Sunkit!" A voice boomed behind him, and the little kit's head swiveled to the side in alarm. A dark brown tabby tom, pelt glimmering with stars, was bristling, eyes wide. "What are you doing?! Why are you here?! Come here! You can't stay!"

Sunkit's head whirled. No...no, he couldn't go back to that false illusion of happiness! Happiness was feeling grass beneath your paws, breathing actual air and pricking your paw on your bedding, and whimpering to the medicine cat to make it better!

This had to work.

"SUNKIT! What are you doing?"

Sunkit touched his nose to the kit's head, mind whirling as if stuffed with feathers. He begged and hoped and imagined himself as the kit, feeling such intense grief and anger that his legs buckled. At the intense emotions soaring through him, he suddenly felt...light. Connected. Breathed as the kit breathed, mewled as the kit mewled.

He heard the faint, desprate shriek of the brown tabby. Then he felt himself fading, fading...and then there was nothing.


	3. A New Life

"Honeyyykit. Honeykittt."

The soft mewls battered his ears, and he grumbled softly at the warm puffs of air that disturbed the fur emerging from his small ears. He twisted away, honey-gold tabby pelt ruffled with sleep, scraps of moss clinging desperately to his fur. Tiny paws dug into his back at this, and he let out a loud squeal at the sudden weight.

"Honeykit! Get uppp!"

Tiny claws dug into his pelt, and he squeaked, rolling onto his back and forcing his eyes open, blinking blearily at the afternoon sunshine filtering in through the nursery, the ferns crowding the entrance keeping the light from being too harsh. His vision was foggy with sleep, and he stared in confusion at the pale ginger she-kit looming over him, the majority of her pelt puffy and white. Her amber eyes were bright with playfulness.

"Hhh...what?" The tabby kit blinked his own eyes, a soft newleaf forest green that was hazy with confusion. Where was...?

"Cloudkit! Is he up yet?!" A squeal came from the entrance to the nursery, and the tom stared at a dark ginger she-kit that had pushed her way through the ferns, hazel eyes narrowed.

"Yep!" The other she-kit purred, whiskers twitching excitedly. She stepped off of the tom kit and trotted to the entrance happily. "Come on, Honeykit!"

_Honeykit...?_

The tom kit unsteadily got to his paws, and as soon as he stood straight, muscles twitching tiredly, a sudden wave of emotion and memories swept towards him, making him gasp, inhaling sharply as he slipped, falling onto his flank.

He remembered. He remembered being Sunkit, touching his nose to the golden-honey tabby kit and feeling everything become one. Everything calm down.

He...he was...

Gasping, the kit forced himself onto his paws. He looked down at himself, twisted and looked at the moss bed, where he had watched the ginger she-cat give birth.

Everything hitting him made his head hurt. Dizzy, he sat down.

_It...it worked!_

In an almost groggy state, the kit swayed, aching, feeling everything sink in. Weave into his heart, his bones...

_I'm...I'm alive! I get another chance! I'm ALIVE!_

Warm joy exploded within the tom kit's small chest, sweeping away the clinging traces of anger and resentment. With a cry of pure relief, shock, and happiness, he forced his new body to move, brush past the _real ferns_. No stars were clinging to plants here. The ground was rough, _real_ , normal. The tales had been TRUE! He wanted to roll onto the ground and cry and bask in this happiness forever. He got to be a warrior! StarClan couldn't keep him, now! If it had worked, surely that meant it was meant to be! He was meant to be given this opportunity!

He was a little taken aback, he had to admit- he hadn't expected to keep his memories. He supposed that hadn't been supposed to happen...uneasiness tried to worm into his pelt, as well as sheer confusion at this little mess up, but before he could think on it too hard, he tripped and let out a little squeak as the full sunlight hit him, sinking into his thin pelt.

"Woooah little buddy," a chuckle sounded, and a large shadow fell over the kit's pelt. He blinked rapdily and looked up to see a golden tabby tom, his green gaze gentle. "A bit clumsy today, huh?"

The kit remembered this tom- the one with the limp hind leg that must be the kit's- no, now _his_ father. He beamed at the tom and got to his paws, purring and pressing against the other cat happily. The warrior chuckled and leaned down, licking and nudging his son.

"HONEYKIT!" A demanding wail boomed across the clearing, and the honey-gold tabby stared at the dark ginger she-kit that was scrabbling upon a rock at the edge of the camp. The pale ginger and white she-kit- Cloudkit, as she was called- was sitting patiently as her sister hauled herself up the large stone. "Come ON!"

"Looks like Alderkit is waiting for you," the warrior purred, the sound a deep rumble that emerged from the depths of his chest. He swept his tail over the kit and nudged him forward. "Go on!"

The kit looked up at his father, happiness bubbling in his chest as he bounded across the sandy camp clearing, feeling little sprouts of grass brush against his delicate paw pads. This was so much different than the ShadowClan camp! The woven dens were thickly protected and lacked pine needes swamping the ground inside of them, and the walls of the camp rose up thickly, with a few passages for the cats to exit and enter the camp. The camp was bright, with the sky above a soothing shade of blue, with the towering, lush tree branches that were vastly different from ShadowClan's pine trees reaching out, but not so far as to where they blocked the sun. Cats milled about, sharing tongues and returning from hunting patrols with rodents and birds swinging from their muzzles. No lizards or frogs?

The kit pulled up to the rock, looking up at his new sister, who's dark pelt was fluffed as she finally managed to scale the rock, standing proudly with her chest puffed out as she balanced atop the stone. He felt a twinge of grief at knowing Clawkit would no longer be the one tussling with him, and that this family _didn't_ have Lizardstreak. The thoughts dimmed his mood a little, but he sharply reminded himself that he was _alive_ for StarClan's sake! Breathing! Walking in the living world! Sure, the memories he had kept for some odd reason bugged him, but he had to enjoy this fresh new life! Be a kit! With no more anger! Forcing himself to abandon his thoughts, he tried his hardest to focus on what was going on.

"Okay, Honeykit!" Alderkit, the dark ginger kit, suddenly turned to her brother, making him tilt his head up at her. "You're deputy this time, since you got to be medicine cat last time. And Cloudkit...you're medicine cat!"

"Boring!" Cloudkit thumped her tail against the ground, giving a little pout.

_Honeykit...they keep saying that. Is that my new name?_

He wasn't sure if he was completely fond of this new identity- Sunkit sounded more bold and bright. But he supposed Honeykit was nice, too! He felt a small thrill travel down his spine as he accepted his new name.

"Okay, I'm Alderstar, then," Alderkit lifted her chin and stuck her tail out, obviously trying to make herself look smart and cofident. "My fellow BattleClan members, there seems to be enemies in our territory once more. Will you both fight with me?"

"Yeahhh," Cloudkit huffed, whiskers twitching and ears pricking forward. "I'll put down my herbs for you any day, oh great Alderstar!"

"And you?" Alderkit turned her gaze to Honeykit, and he purred ecstatically, flexing his tiny claws.

"Of course, uh...oh great Alderstar!"

"Wonderful," with a nod of approval, the she-cat suddenly glared out into the camp, leaning forward on the rock. When Honeykit turned to look, he saw a short grey tabby tom crossing the clearing, stopping to chat with a thick-furred brown tabby tom.

"The intruder is Mousestep!" Alderkit hissed softly, crouching to eye her two siblings. "Are you ready, BattleClan?"

"Ready!" Cloudkit bounced to her paws, and Honeykit did the same, feeling a warm bubble of laughter float up into his throat. He had tussled with Marshclaw's, a ShadowClan warrior's, tail many times before. He loved playing battle games!

With a squeal, Alderkit launched herself off the rock, and stumbled once she hit the ground. After she regained herself, she kicked off towards Mousestep, the short silver tabby. She didn't have her claws out, so Mousestep only let out a little squeak as the kit collided with him, paws digging into his fur as she scrabbled at his flank, trying to hang on. Cloudkit followed, letting out a squeal as she leaped onto his back, making the tom grunt and sway on his paws at the added weight.

Honeykit felt his heart light up as he followed his sisters, letting out a caterwaul as he, too, launched onto the tom's back, making him fall over at last. The thick-furred brown tabby just shook his head good-heartedly and padded off.

"Ahhh! Ambush!" Mousestep cried as the kits swarmed his flank, paws slipping onto his muzzle as the kits moved about, squeaking and biting into his fur as gently as they could.

Honeykit sank his tiny, thorn like teeth into a clump of tabby fur, purring in delight as he tugged lightly and battered the tom with his back paws, feeling the warrior purr and let out a mock groan of pain as Alderkit battered his face with her front paws, acting as if she were slashing him.

"That's what you get for invading BattleClan territory!" Cloudkit squeaked, pretending to viciously rip out his fur. "Raaaa!"

"I'm sorry!" Mousestep cried, eyes glowing with amusement. "Please spare me, oooohhh the pain! Please! I'll go back home, just let me go!"

Honeykit pounced onto the tom's tail, purring and growling as he wrapped his paws around it, biting it and rolling around with it as if it were a real attacking warrior. Mousestep played along and flicked his tail, making the tabby kit squeal as he lost his grip.

"Kits giving you a handful?" A soft mewl sounded, and Honeykit paused in his attack on Mousestep's tail as he caught sight of a pale ginger she-cat with darker orange sections traveling down her pelt. The kit instantly recognized the soft-furred she-cat- she was the molly that had given birth! She was his new mom!

"Mama, he trespassed!" Alderkit cuffed one of Mousestep's ears, making him wheeze in mock distress. "So we're teaching him a lesson!"

"Ohhh, I see," the she-cat let out a soft laugh and sat down, watching her kits tussle with the warrior. "You'll all make fine apprentices."

Honeykit released Mousestep's tail as his sister's continued to 'battle' the warrior beneath them, squealing as he began to stagger to his paws, making them cling on for dear life. He found himself looking up at his new mother, feeling a strong wave of grief hit him as he remembered Lizardstreak. He felt sick as he remembered his former family.

"Honeykit?" The she-cat- Mosswillow, Honeykit remembered- ducked her head down at her son, who had a distressed tang to his features. "What's wrong? Are you feeling sick?"

Honeykit stared up at the molly's concerned gaze, and he quickly shook out his fur, padding hesitantly closer to the she-cat. This was his new life, after all. He had to get used to everything! His features shifted to one of peace, and he happily bumped against the she-cat's flank.

"No, I'm fine!" He nuzzled his new mother's soft fur, seeing her smile as she leaned down to lap at her son's pelt. "Just hungry."

"It's about time you and your siblings ate, anyways," Mosswillow fondly flicked the kit with her tail. "Alderkit! Cloudkit! Leave Mousestep alone! It's time to eat!"

Honeykit watched as his sisters eagerly snapped to attention, falling off of the short tabby tom as he stood straight, purring and twisting to lap at his now ruffled fur. The two kits charged over to Mosswillow, Alderkit colliding with her, making their mother laugh.

As Mosswillow stood and began leading her kits to the fresh-kill pile, Honeykit allowed himself to take in everything once more, disbelief and shock at being alive still ebbing at his mind. This was all just so odd! Being a different cat inside than who you were on the outside. But Honeykit quickly swatted that thought away. He _was_ Honeykit. That was him. One and the same. Sunkit was gone.

At the fresh-kill pile, heavy, meaty scents swamped over Honeykit, and he gaped at the dug out hole that held a sizable amout of rodents, a soft blue feathered bird layering the top. It was so different from the usually scaled pile of bodies in ShadowClan! Honeykit felt his mouth water as his mother leaned down to pull out two fat mice by the tails, the bodies a muddy shade of brown. Honeykit barely noticed the white tom and brown tabby she-cat sitting near the pile, watching the queen pull out food for her kits.

"They're growing fast, aren't they?" The brown tabby called out, and Mosswillow dropped the mice to look at the cats.

"Sure are!" The queen dipped her head, and the white tom stretched and seemed to look over the kits.

"I hope they'll be fine warriors," was all the tom said, before he leaned over to lap at the tabby's pelt, the two beginning to share tongues in the soft afternoon light.

Mosswillow purred and turned to her kits, who were eagerly staring at the mice. "Dig in! I'll eat what you guys don't finish."

Alderkit squealed, and began digging into the mouse closest to her, Cloudkit latching onto the same mouse, sharing with her sister as they tore off the flesh and began eating happily.

Honeykit felt a little more hesitant as he crouched in front of the decently large rodent. He had only ever tried small lizards, only ever having lived enough to only barely have weaned off of milk. He nosed the still warm body, and opened his jaws, sinking his teeth into the prey. He was surprised at the juicy and fulfilling flavor that washed his tongue, and he tore off the tender flesh easily, chewing slowly and swallowing at the same place. The taste was absolutely wonderful!

Mouth watering, he dug in, tearing and eating until his belly was full, and he pushed away what remained for his mother to eat. His sisters had finished their mouse, swiping their tongues over their muzzles and closing their eyes, purring.

Honeykit was convinced he had eaten way too much. Standing and wobbling over to a sunny path of earth, he settled down, stretching out and letting the warmth sink into his darker honey belly, closing his eyes in bliss. _This_ was living. _This_ was what he would get to experience now- for his whole life ahead of him. The thought of actually growing up once again thrilled Honeykit. He was so grateful for this opportunity. He hoped one day he would completely stop thinking about how lucky he was, being so happy with his life that he lived it as if he had never been reborn.

"Ohhh wow I'm _stuffed_." Alderkit flopped down next to Honeykit, Cloudkit following as her pelt brushed her brother's.

"Same here," Honeykit purred happily, splaying his paws as he stretched once more. "I can't wait until we can start hunting those fat mice."

"Just two more moons!" Cloudkit mewled softly. "Then we'll be 'paws!"

"I can't wait," Alderkit swept her tail over her siblings. "We'll totally beat Milkpaw! Sucks we can't beat Hailpaw, though. I wish he'd NOT become a warrior! I wanna pummel him!"

Honeykit's eyes fluttered open in a bit of shock. He was already four moons old? Why was he only just becoming aware, then? He had faint memories of opening his eyes for the first time and seeing a ginger blur, and curling up in a milk scented nest along two other bundles, but that was it. It was...odd that he only came through now.

His thoughts were interrupted as Alderkit suddenly rolled over onto him, and he squealed as his sister's dark ginger fur covered his face. He battered at her, making her giggle, and she in turn squeaked when Cloudkit tackled her, pushing her off.

Honeykit giggled as well, and rolled away, settling back down in the slowly fading sunshine as he watched his sisters tussle.

He would make the most out of his second shot. No matter what.


	4. Warming Up and Hazy Dreams

"Oh StarClan, my paws are gonna fall off!" Honeykit's ears swiveled at Alderkit's complaint as she stumbled next to him, dark ginger fur brushing against his as she clumsily padded along.

"No, they're not," the golden tabby next to Honeykit chuckled, the warrior's limp leg not holding him back from keeping a regular pace with only the slightest of limps. "Come on. Just a few more mouse lengths and you're in the nursery."

Cloudkit had her head tilted upwards as she brushed against the ginger hued she-cat next to her, her eyes wide and pupils expanded to the size of miniscule moons. She seemed to be admiring the clear greenleaf night sky above them, deep and beautiful as the stars glittered coldly, swimming in the abyss that cast an absolute darkness over the land, said land only being saved by the curved snowy moon above, illuminating the trees with a shocking beauty.

As soon as the family reached the nursery, Alderkit halted her dramatic, jerky movements and launched past the soft ferns outlining the den with a relieved squeal, Cloudkit trotting after her. Honeykit felt a yawn bubble up within his throat, and his tiny teeth were revealed as he stretched his jaws in a massive yawn, purring tiredly as his father nudged him past the ferns.

The den was absolutely dark, with a few beams of pale light slithering past the weavings of the den, lighting up edges of the nests and Cloudkit's puffed out fur as she stepped into one of the moss lined nests, the one in which Alderkit was already curled up within. The dark she-kit didn't seem to mind as Cloudkit snuggled close to her sister and rested her head upon her ginger flank, her own pale fur sticking out from her sister's.

Honeykit hesitated, his shoulders aching and his honey-gold tabby coat ruffled. Throughout the day, he had practically forgotten the miracle that had brought him here, which allowed for more fun and tussling with his new sisters. But suddenly he felt stiff- like an intruder, a stranger. This was his first night after becoming fully aware, and yet he had become so attached to his new life. So why did it feel as if he didn't belong, as if he couldn't curl up with his sisters?

"Go on, it's time for bed," the gentle voice of Mosswillow gently battered Honeykit's ears as the she-cat stepped up beside him, her pale fur and darker sides brushing against her son. Honeykit wearily blinked up at her, and forced his paws to move.

_I'm Honeykit now. Not Sunkit. My sisters were born at the same time as me. I'm their brother. I belong!_

Stepping into the wonderfully soft nest that cradled his aching paw pads, Honeykit shuffled closer to Cloudkit and settled down, stretching in such a way that allowed him to be curled around Cloudkit and for his head to rest on Alderkit's lower back. He began to purr quietly as Mosswillow settled down as well, curling around her kits that were quickly approaching the size of apprentices.

Sandpelt, as Honeykit now knew his father, nuzzled his mate and gently touched noses with her, brushing his tail over his bundles of joy and plopping down on the opposite side of Mosswillow, so that the queen and the warrior formed a sort of barrier for their kittens.

Honeykit purred even louder, though he had to lower the noise when Cloudkit gently kicked his muzzle with a back paw. He felt warmth encompass his body, and he nuzzled into Alderkit's fur, a smile tugging at his muzzle. He felt absolutely loved and secure, and he hoped this feeling would never leave him.

 _I'm so glad I'm here._ Honeykit thought distantly, his eyes fluttering shut. _Thank you, StarClan._

Throughout that day, Honeykit had absolutely worn himself out. Alderkit was the type of kit who wanted to wrestle every few moments, pouncing on her siblings or other cats. Honeykit frequently fell victim to her assaults, and he would just roll over and swat at her muzzle until she sneezed and backed off. Cloudkit was a much calmer kit, and she and Honeykit had hid under bushes from their prowling sister multiple times throughout the day. Not only that, but Honeykit had spent a good portion of the day wondering, distantly, why he had kept his memories. That had quickly been shut down yet again as he told himself to consider it a blessing from StarClan, for now he could remember his tragedy and mend his emotions by living out his life as he should of been able to.

Whenever he could, Honeykit would sit and listen to the cats as they padded in and out of camp, chatting with one another and eating prey in the shade of the dens or bracken. After further inspection of the camp, Honeykit realized most of it was a stone hollow, and the rises he had noticed were cliffs which the Clan cats would travel down to reach the clearing from the main, thorn tunnel entrance. After poking around in the dens, Honeykit noticed some of them were dug out into the cliffs and stone themselves, which was much different from how he remembered ShadowClan's camp. In his search for dens, Honeykit had originally not been able to find a few, for bramble tendrils, as he had later found out, hid a few of the said dens.

Honeykit had found the dirtplace, too, and right after he began to pad around the Highledge, which he had heard his new mother bring up in conversation. He supposed it was the place where the leader made his speeches, for the sleek and pale silver tabby tom Honeykit had learned was Lilystar sat under with his deputy- a black and white cat with a long scar down their underbelly and one of their back legs, who was named Ospreyclaw.

As well as exploring the camp, Honeykit had been paying attention to conversations to learn the names of the cats around him, knowing he couldn't exactly ask since for some odd reason, he had only become aware at the four moon old mark. He would of been expected to know the majority of the Clan by now. Luckily, by the end of the day, he could recognize and name most of the cats from his investigating.

The dark grey she-cat that had helped Mosswillow give birth was named Juniperwish, the quiet and collected medicine cat. Honeykit had, at first, been wary around her, stepping lightly and dodging her attention if she tried to speak to the kits to see how they were. Every time he thought of herbs, Redbark pushing the fatal herb bundle in his face formed in his memories, and the taste of the deathberry seemed to rise back into his mouth. He didn't exactly feel like facing a medicine cat again any time soon.

Honeykit had caught the attention of a cream and white tom throughout the day, and the kit was able to remember that his name was Milkpaw. The tom was kind and semi-hyper, bouncing on his paws and asking Honeykit if he was excited to be an apprentice. The warrior in training meowed on about how he would be a warrior himself in a few moons, but would be able to train with the kits for a little while. Honeykit had purred and asked him what it was like to be an apprentice, in which Milkpaw had briefly described the duties he had to take part in, and the amazing hunting and battle tactics he got to learn. It all sounded exciting to Honeykit.

Later on in the day, Honeykit got to witness Lilystar pad to the top of the Highledge and call for a Clan meeting.

_Honeykit and his sisters were nudged to the side as the words "All cats old enough to catch their own prey, meet here beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" rang out across the ThunderClan camp. This didn't stop the kits from edging closer, however, Alderkit's tail lashing with curiosity. Cloudkit's ears pricked forward, and Honeykit settled down and stared at Lilystar, who's serious gaze also held warm pools of affection and gentleness._

_"I apologize for the sudden meeting today," Lilystar's voice boomed out so every cat milling below had a chance to hear and quiet down their whispers. "But you may be at ease. This is not a meeting to discuss any sort of danger."_

_At this, Honeykit noticed the thick furred brown tabby tom Briartalon relax, as well as a few other cats among the crowd. Honeykit excitedly thumped his tail against the ground. What was this for?_

_"As you all know, we have not had many kits born into ThunderClan throughout the recent seasons," Lilystar continued, tabby tail sweeping through the air quietly behind him. "And so, many of our warriors are approaching or are already at their senior warrior statuses. One of these loyal cats has served for many moons, catching bountiful prey and helping to pull us through battles. She has pushed herself these last few seasons, even though her body protested. Dapplebeam, will you please step forward?"_

_Honeykit watched as a frail calico she-cat stood from her position in the crowd, slowly weaving between her Clanmates as their eyes all softened and quiet murmurs filled the air, smiles coming across every muzzle and heads beginning to dip in respect._

_"Dapplebeam, you have been a loyal warrior since I was deputy," Lilystar's assertive, serious voice softened as he addressed the old she-cat, his head dipping to her in the immense respect the other cats were showing. "Even though you have helped us way beyond the point where you could stop and rest peacefully, you pushed yourself. ThunderClan greatly appreciates all you have done for us. You came to me last night with grace in your step, as if you'll always be a young warrior, though your frail body and request to retire said otherwise."_

_As the soft and respectful whispers continued, Dapplebeam lifted her muzzle up high and straightened herself. Honeykit could see the frailness of her age clearly within her faintly showing ribs and her aged fur that hung down her pelt._

_Lilystar looked down upon Dapplebeam and flicked his tail, preparing for the words he would say._

_"Dapplebeam, is it your wish to give up the name of a warrior and go to join the elders?"_

_"Yes, it is." Dapplebeam didn't hesitate as the words flowed from her, her eyes and scars holding the many experiences she had gone through as a warrior._

_"Your Clan honors you and all the service you have given to us. I call upon StarClan to give you many moons of rest." As Lilystar finished the ceremony's words, the Clan began to tilt their muzzles upwards, calling out to the sky for the cat who would become the Clan's only elder._

_"Dapplebeam!"_

_"Dapplebeam!"_

_"Dapplebeam!"_

_Honeykit felt a little thrill go through him, and he himself gave a little cry to the old she-cat, feeling in that moment as if he were always destined to be here among these cats, to watch these ceremonies and appreciate the cats around him. He felt that feeling further worm itself under his pelt as Alderkit and Cloudkit joined him in his yowling._

Honeykit's memories of the day slowly swirled into nothing as sleep finally overtook him in his nest with his new family, body becoming slack as the night cradled him.

However, the feeling of peace that came with rest was shattered as soon as it had begun.

Honeykit found himself in a dark clearing, the grass sprouting from the ground long and droopy, the earth beneath his paws soaked and muddy, the mud squelching between his paws as he stood, soft green eyes wide in confusion as he whipped his head, looking around. There were no trees. Just an open, starry sky, and the soft whispers of the night.

_Huh...? Where am I?_

His body feeling oddly light, Honeykit hesitantly took a step forward, paw sinking deeper into the mud. Hissing at the feeling, the kit pulled his paw from the earth, staring at the deep brown residue that clung to his fur and chilled his skin.

As the kit forced himself forward ever so slowly, with his paws sinking deep into the ground, a crawling feeling squirmed beneath his fur and made him bristle, shrinking down into himself at the feeling of being watched, having that constant sense of anxiety and fear as he moved on, not feeling like himself. He felt as if only part of him were present.

As the kit pulled up to a seemingly healthy bunch of oddly dark heather, which he had only seen when Lizardstreak brought some from the edges of WindClan territory for the nest she shared with him and Clawkit, a deep hiss that resounded in Honeykit's ears boomed from the darkness, and the tabby felt his blood run cold and heart pound painfully in his chest. He tried to step back, to do anything, but he was suddenly stuck, the mud rising up his legs as if devouring him.

The kitten let out a shriek, reaching with his muzzle in a pathetic attempt to perhaps reach one of the sticks littered on the ground around him, but it was useless. He took a deep gulp as the mud rose to his neck and face, putting pressure on his chest and sliding over his back. Finally, with a sharp tug, his muzzle was pulled under.

Instead of suffocating, Honeykit was propelled downwards and out of the mud until he collapsed in a field of flowers, mud sliding off his fur as if it were water. Gasping and filled with fear and utter confusion, the kit scrambled to his paws, staring at the vastly different landscape.

The flowers were in hues of pink and purple, and the grass reached to the middle of his legs instead of his shoulders. The sky was a soft, nearly white blue, and pale stars speckled the already light sky. Honeykit wanted to panic and say StarClan had dragged him back, but this couldn't be StarClan. It looked...different.

Honeykit swallowed thickly, and supposed he should push on.

However, when the kit took a step, the world suddenly flashed to blackness, and the ground crumbled beneath his paws. With a cry, Honeykit fell into the inky blackness, seeing a flash of orange before his eyes suddenly snapped open, a panicked gasp ripped from him as he blinked rapidly in the dimness of the dawn light filtering through the nursery. The night was already over?

Feeling his blood roar in his ears, Honeykit tried to stop shaking in order to not rouse his siblings or parents, who were still sleeping soundly. It had all been a dream. A bad dream, but a dream nonetheless. He was fine. He was safe.

Knowing it was all just a scary vision his mind had conjured up, Honeykit forced his eyes to close as he nuzzled back into the warmth of his littermates. Yet, as he tried to sleep, he found it near impossible due to an uneasy doubt clawing at his ears. Was StarClan perhaps angry with him? And forcing terrible dreams onto him? Why would they be angry, surely they let this happen since the process to let him live once more had been successful?

Honeykit eventually fell back asleep. But it was in an uncomfortable, fearful haze.


	5. Happy Day, Alarming Night

"Mmmph!"

"And Cloudkit's back with the moss!"

Alderkit chirped happily, jumping to her paws and flicking her tail to and fro. The faint white markings on her chest and dark ginger coat were getting more noticeable as she grew.

The pale ginger and white she-kit padded up to her siblings, dropping the heap of deep green moss with a wet plop. Honeykit supposed, as he groomed his darker chest fur absentmindedly, that she had collected it from a puddle at one of the edges of the camp.

"Okay! Let's see if I can do it right this time..." Alderkit wriggled her haunches as she crouched and moved towards the moss as if stalking a delicious mouse. Cloudkit rolled her eyes as her sister pounced, front paws squishing into the moss as she let out a yowl of victory.

"You're gonna ruin it before we can roll it into a ball!" Honeykit finally spoke, reaching out a front paw to bat at Alderkit's swishing tail. "Stop ittt!"

Alderkit's gaze swept both of the other kits, and she stuck out her tongue as she plopped back, grappling the moss and using her small paws to begin to tuck the mound into itself, trying to mold it into a circular shape.

It had been a moon since Honeykit had become aware, no longer carrying the name Sunkit or the ShadowClan blood that had previously run through his veins. At the five moon old mark, he and his sisters were just a few ear lengths shorter than Hailpaw, who was the size of a young warrior by now. Honeykit had never experienced being this large, and he prided himself on no longer being frail and tiny, as he had been in his previous life.

Honeykit didn't like to focus too much on the fact that he had this second chance. He just liked to enjoy it, live it out as if he had never died in the first place. But it was hard to not think about, when it was an amazing, stunning event! It shocked him down to his paw pads when he thought about how lucky he was, and the fact that he truly got to live his life out now. He had been a kit, after all, and still was. He had the brain of a young kitten, too. It had been easy to connect with his new family, and he was slowly beginning to feel like he truly belonged. So, now he tried not to think too much on being reborn, or the odd fact that he got to keep his memories, and focused on the current events going on around him.

Even though so much time had already passed, Honeykit was still frightened when thinking of that odd dream he had had that one night in the nursery, curled up among his kin. He knew it was just a bad dream, nothing more than that, but yet it had left him chilled to the core. The panic he had felt in his dream was more than real, and every time the mud clogging his senses returned to his thoughts he felt a thrill of panic run down his spine. He could rest easy knowing it wasn't StarClan being angry with him, though. Otherwise they would of absolutely overwhelmed him with such awful dreams.

Not only that, but Honeykit was surprised at himself. He had once been seething with such intense anger in StarClan, and here he was often purring and weaving around his new kin. He had been rightful to be angry! But now, any traces left of that hot fury were gone, sedated and cured now that he got what he deserved! A much longer life, free of murderous medicine cats!

Other than all of that plaguing his mind, Honeykit was glad to just...be a kit. See what life was like in ThunderClan. He couldn't wait to be an apprentice! It would the first time he experienced that! The moans and groans from Milkpaw when he went off to do his duties didn't deter Honeykit in the slightest- this was a big thing for him! Alderkit was practically clawing everyone's ears off in her own anticipation, and even Cloudkit was jumpy and excited when the topic of apprenticeship was brought up. The thought of even being a warrior afterwards was so hazy for Honeykit. He didn't even deem it possible that he'd be like the golden she-cat Goldensplash, who had the darker legs and eye markings. Or even the tortoiseshell and white splotched she-cat Turtlefrost! Any of the warriors!

"That isn't a ball!" Cloudkit's whine cut through Honeykit's voice as he looked up to see his sisters glaring at one another, Alderkit's paws resting beside a misshapen semi-round ball of moss.

"I'm sorrrry!" Alderkit hissed, ears flattening to the back of her head. "You couldn't do any better with your fat paws!"

Cloudkit let out a gasp, then yowled as she flung herself at the other kit, the two mewling sharply as they rolled around on the ground, paws flailing and kicking and coats getting dusted in sandy dirt.

Honeykit gave a little roll of his eyes, affection blooming in his heart. _And they're at it again._

"Woooah, what seems to be the problem here?"

Honeykit jumped, blinking and twisting to see a dark grey tom with darker grey freckles sprinkling all over his pelt, his gaze filled with amusement as he watched the tussling she-kits.

"Oh! Hi Hailpaw," Honeykit whisked his tail at the apprentice, the honey-gold tabby glancing back at his sisters. "They're just fighting because Alderkit absolutely failed to get the moss into a ball."

Hailpaw let out a warm laugh, and the tom padded towards the heap of moss, shaking his head. "Kits! Fighting over such innocent things. Here, I'll help before my final training session."

As Hailpaw plopped down on his hindquarters and pulled the moss closer, dark grey paws pressing at the damp mound, Honeykit tilted his head.

"Final training session?"

Hailpaw didn't look up from his moss ball repair as he nodded, humming for a moment. "I'm becoming a warrior tonight. I'm going out to train with Thorntooth, since my old mentor is now in the elders' den. Poor Dapplebeam. At least she'll have you three and Milkpaw to help her."

"Oh! She was your mentor?" Honeykit's ears perked forward.

"Yep! She wanted so badly to stay a warrior until she finished training me, but I told her she was going to fall over next time she took me out to the lake!" Hailpaw chuckled fondly. "Thorntooth's pretty nice, too."

"Well, it's a good thing Thorntooth's a good mentor, too! I bet being a warrior is awesome," Honeykit purred, glancing up at the early sunshine. "What do you think your name is gonna be?"

"Oh gosh," Hailpaw blinked in wonder as if the thought hadn't hit him yet, and he tossed over the now mostly circular moss ball, Honeykit squeaking as he batted at it and reached out to steady it as it bounced against the ground softly. "I haven't really thought about it! It's probably going to be something obvious like Hailfur, Hailpelt, or Hailstorm."

"Hailstorm sounds cool!" Honeykit squeaked, eyes widening a bit. _'Storm' is such a cool one! Sunstorm...that would of been great. Honeystorm...not as much._

"Thanks, buddy," Hailpaw smiled, and grunted as he pushed himself to his paws. "Looks like your sisters are over their fight now. Have fun!"

"Good luck on becoming a warrior!" Honeykit called out to the apprentice as he charged across the clearing, his dim grey tom for a mentor nodding, overgrown teeth poking out of his muzzle.

Alderkit and Cloudkit were indeed done tussling, both she-kits panting and coated in sandy dirt, fur spiked and ruffled. Cloudkit even had a small scratch on her cheek that only dribbled a few droplets of blood due to not being deep. But now Alderkit lapped at her sister's fur while the paler of the two apologized.

Before Honeykit could bring up the moss ball, a sudden yelp was heard and a light skid of paws was heard as Mosswillow ran over to her kits, eyes wide as she scornfully flicked her tail at Alderkit and Cloudkit.

"What in StarClan's name happened? Cloudkit, is that a scratch?" Mosswillow fluffed out her fur as she fussed over her kits, who whined and moved away. Honeykit thought his new mother wouldn't pay him any mind, but with a sweep of her ginger tail that brought him closer and her tongue that swept over his ears, he knew he was wrong.

Mosswillow was much different from Lizardstreak. Lizardstreak trusted her kits to play around in the camp while she tried her best to participate in patrols. She was a loving mother, and he and Clawkit had been absolutely spoiled. But Lizardstreak still let her kits be independent for the most part. Mosswillow, however, was fussy and bold, checking up on her kits every once and a while and watching them from her spot in the clearing. She didn't go on patrols, and wouldn't until her kits were apprentices. After all, it was her first litter and she felt a fierce need to be within eyesight of them at all times.

In ShadowClan, Honeykit- Sunkit at the time, had not had a father. His father had died in the leaf-bare before he was born, having gone to a Twolegplace to look for any prey that might be wandering there. He had been hit by a monster. Lizardstreak had told both him and Clawkit that his name had been Lightpine. But now, Honeykit had Sandpelt, who was a fiercely protective warrior despite his limp leg that tried to hold him back. He often went on patrols and was practically a kit around his offspring, rolling over and purring and playing with them when Mosswillow couldn't. He loved all of them dearly. Upon listening in to a conversation late at night between his sisters that involved 'who was the bravest warrior', he had managed to pick apart that Sandpelt had gotten his lifelong injury from a fallen tree branch. Thinking about family made Honeykit's heart ache for Lizardstreak and Clawkit, but he knew he couldn't be in their lives now.

Honeykit squealed and squirmed from the attention his mother was giving all of them, and when she paused her fussing, she glanced up at the moss ball, lonely in the scuffed up dirt.

"Looks like you guys were going to play some moss ball," Mosswillow gently stepped back from her kits, Alderkit letting out a relieved sigh. "Mind if I play for a moment?"

Cloudkit excitedly bounced, and Alderkit blinked at the more properly shaped ball.

"Hailpaw fixed it," Honeykit informed his sister with a smirk, the she-kit glaring and nudging him so harshly he nearly fell over. "Gosh! No need to be rude."

"No fighting!" Mosswillow reminded sharply as she stood over the moss ball. "You know why?"

"Because Honeykit's a mousebrain, and you don't want me to make him feel bad?" Alderkit stuck out her tongue, and their ginger mother gave her a scornful look.

"No! Because, didn't you guys know? I'm the _best_ at moss ball!" Mosswillow put a goofy grin on her face, and before her kits could react, she scooped the moss ball into the air with her paw, high above Honeykit's head.

Alderkit yowled and chased after it, Cloudkit following and nipping at her sister's tail. Honeykit charged ahead and leaped for it, and his claws did snag onto the ball, but Alderkit knocked it out of his paws, scurrying to guard it as Cloudkit narrowly avoided knocking into the other kit.

Honeykit grunted and wriggled closer until he could lash a paw beneath Alderkit, unhooking it from her guard and flinging it with his claws above him, feeling it hit his head as he jumped to his paws. While the she-kits were shocked, Mosswillow charged forward and butted the ball into the air, laughing as Cloudkit jumped to snag it.

The game of moss ball went on like this until the afternoon, the kits and queen panting and nipping moss scraps from the now completely destroyed ball from their pelts. When Sandpelt returned from patrol, he gave one look at his mate and kits and started laughing, letting out a startled grunt as Mosswillow sprung to her paws and rammed into her mate, knocking him over. Ospreyclaw and the light grey, battle torn she-cat with the ripped ears known as Icewhisker returned from another patrol with the pale brown tabby tom with the white chest known as Birchflight and the dilute tortoiseshell Hawklily following behind. Hawklily and Birchflight didn't pay any heed to the grown cats tumbled over one another, but Ospreyclaw gave a look of dismay at the full grown warriors laughing as they tussled, their kits squealing and leaping onto the cats. The deputy lashed their tail and padded off to discuss the border patrol's report with Lilystar, while Icewhisker purred in amusement on her way by.

The next part of the day was filled with Honeykit stretching and basking in the sunlight, Alderkit and Cloudkit curled up around him. All three kits looked up quickly, however, when Hailpaw suddenly padded into the center of the clearing, Thorntooth by his side. As well as Dapplebeam, who had padded out of the elders' den on shaking paws to stand on the other side of her former apprentice.

Lilystar padded onto the top of the Highledge as well, Ospreyclaw taking their spot beneath the towering rock. Cats around the camp began to look up and pad closer, eyes bright with excitement as they realized what must be happening.

"May all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" Lilystar yowled out, though the cats already lingering about didn't need to be told as they excitedly sat down. Milkpaw, who was by the fresh-kill pile, looked over with a flash of something that Honeykit couldn't decipher in his gaze. The cream and white apprentice turned away, fur bristling. What was the matter?

As the warriors all settled down, the kits huddled at the edges of the crowd included, Lilystar coughed and swayed his tail, looking down upon Hailpaw and the two cats beside him.

"Today, ThunderClan, is an important day. We have not had a new warrior in quite a long time," the sleek, pale silver tabby's eyes closed for a moment, as if thinking upon his next words. When he opened them again, he continued on. "Hailpaw, would you please step forward with your mentors?"

The speckled, dark grey tom lifted his head shakily and stepped to the front of the crowd along with Thorntooth and Dapplebeam. The old calico looked immensely proud, and Thorntooth shook out his dim grey coat casually, though his eyes shone happily. The cats around them whispered encouragingly.

"Hailpaw, you arrived here with Poppy several moons ago," Lilystar dipped his head to the dark grey tabby she-cat in the crowd whom he was referring to, and she dipped her head in return. "Both of you were rogues, who had found an impressive interest in Clan life. You have had to fight for a place in this Clan, and prove your loyalty time and time again. And you have. Hailpaw, you are a courageous cat who may have been a rogue, but has the heart of a true ThunderClan warrior. And that you are today."

Hailpaw's eyes were as wide as moons, and Honeykit glimpsed him shaking like a kit.

_That's going to be me one day!_

Honeykit himself shook at the thought, green eyes widening.

"I, Lilystar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn. Hailpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your own life?" Lilystar spoke the ceremony's words with a radiating confidence that seemed to smother Hailpaw. Out of the corner of his eye, Honeykit even saw Milkpaw wince and slip into the apprentices' den.

"I do!" A small mewl came from Hailpaw.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Hailpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Hailbird. StarClan honors your loyalty, and freedom to glide like a bird among this Clan as if you were born here, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

As Lilystar bounded down the Highledge to meet the new warrior, Honeykit noticed that Hailbird's eyes were wide with surprise at the unexpected name, though he looked immensely proud and pleased as Lilystar rested his muzzle upon Hailbird's head, the apprentice licking the leader's tabby shoulder.

"Hailbird!"

"Hailbird!"

"Hailbird!"

The cries erupted like trapped prey being released from a cat's claws, and Poppy's cry was one of the loudest. Honeykit once again joined in, Alderkit practically screeching and Cloudkit's yowl being too soft to hear.

_That'll be me...us...one day. Alderkit, Cloudkit, and I will be there one day._

Dapplebeam and Thorntooth practically smothered Hailbird in proud cries and licks, and Honeykit felt his heart swell.

_I was meant to get this opportunity._

That night, Hailbird sat beneath the Highledge for his silent vigil, ears pricked and body straightened alertly. Mosswillow bustled her kits into the nursery, and Sandpelt came in to once again join his family as they settled into their nests, Mosswillow muttering about needing to add feathers and more moss to the nest the next day. Honeykit honestly didn't remember much about the night, for when he fell asleep, he was plunged back into a state of terror.

Once again, the honey-gold tabby was thrown into a terrifying dream- this time, he was flung into a dark clearing, paws bound in sticky mud. He swallowed thickly and tried to free himself, but it was all futile. He cried out for his sisters and parents, but was silenced with prickling panic as cats suddenly emerged from the looming trees, shadowy and large and encircling the whole clearing, eyes all glowing.

Honeykit yanked at his paws and tried to force them forward, begging to StarClan for him to wake up, but nothing worked. The cats closed in, expressions still, and the kit flattened himself further into the mud to avoid the approaching cats.

With a yowl, one of the shadowy felines was slashed across the throat and thumped to the ground. That set off _something, anything_ for the shadows all began to wail and collapse, writhing and choking and falling still.

Then the ground caved in and Honeykit was hurtled back to awareness, gasping and clinging to Cloudkit as he awoke, heart hammering and tears pricking at the corners of his eyes.

_That...that was really bad! Why another one? I never had these dreams when I...I was Sunkit!_

Frightened, Honeykit moved away from his sister and shuffed closer to Sandpelt, who was snoring quietly. The tabby kit whimpered and snuggled into father's golden tabby fur. The warrior jerked awake, and blinked down at his kit.

"What's wrong, Honeykit?" Sandpelt's voice was rough with exhaustion, but Honeykit still found it comforting as he curled up at his father's belly.

"I had a bad dream," Honeykit whispered, shaking as the the shrieks of the shadowy cats rang within his ears. "I was stuck, and a bunch of these cats were trying to get to me, and-!"

"Shhh," Sandpelt hushed his son lightly, curling up around him and tucking his tail over his shaking kit's back. "It was just a bad dream. There's no shadowy cats here. Only ThunderClan. It's not dawn yet, bud. Do you think you can fall back asleep?"

Honeykit nodded weakly, for his mind was already begging him to sleep. He relaxed against Sandpelt as the tom began grooming his son tiredly, and within moments, Honeykit was able to drift off into the darkness of uneasy sleep before the full impact of his fear could snatch him and force him to stay awake.


	6. One More Day

"Tomorrow's the day," Alderkit was puffing as she trotted back and forth in front of the nursery, dark ginger coat that was flecked with the occasional white marking fluffed out as she moved. "We're gonna be 'paws, so we need to train up early!"

"Alderkit, that's not how it works," Cloudkit was busy lapping at her pad pads, rolling her eyes as her more energetic sibling stopped to shoot her a glare.

"What early training can we even do?" Honeykit stopped grooming his honey-gold tabby pelt to look at his littermate. "We're stuck in camp."

"We can tussle, for one," Alderkit dropped into a crouch and grinned up at Honeykit, and he let out a squeak as she wriggled her hindquarters and launched into him, her fluffy fur brushing his nose as he let out an 'oof', body colliding with the ground. Alderkit just beamed and dug her paws into his fur, hazel eyes bright.

"Quick! Pretend I'm a nasty ShadowClan cat!" Alderkit squealed, leaning down to bite into Honeykit's shoulder, only tugging on his fur.

Honeykit squirmed and whined for a moment, not liking the feeling of being pinned, but he decided, grumpily, to play along. Rolling onto his back beneath the she-kit, he dug his back paws into her fluffy stomach and began kicking lightly, claws carefully sheathed. When Alderkit just grunted and growled, not budging, he wrapped his front paws around her ears and moved to batter her muzzle, yowling in victory as she stumbled back enough for him to jump to his paws, barreling into his sister and knocking her down as Cloudkit watched with a twitching tail.

"No fair!" Alderkit mewled sharply as Honeykit didn't waste any time to rear back, coming back down to batter the dark ginger kit's face. When Alderkit gave a harsh kick to his stomach, he yelped and fell back, wincing at the force that tingled against his belly.

It was true- Honeykit and his siblings would be apprentices the next sunrise. It had been a moon since his last terrible dream, and Honeykit was just convinced they were happening because of his own, private worries about getting his second chance without permission from StarClan, persay. And the fact that he was stuck in camp- he was nearly the size of an adult cat now, as were his littermates, and he felt crowded among the warriors that exited and returned to the camp. Internally, he was absolutely humming with excitement, wondering what the apprentice life would truly be like and feel like. He wanted to know what it was like to hunt, to swiftly kill a mouse or bird and carry it back to the camp with pride, knowing he was feeding his Clanmates. He wondered what it was like to go on border patrols and feel the forest move around him. Most of all, he wondered what the outside world was like- he had never experienced a life beyond a Clan's camp. Along with his curiosity, the tom had been warming up to his new life immensely, enjoying every second that he was able to breathe.

In his sixth moon, Honeykit had been taking time to bond with his Clan and family even more. Mosswillow and Sandpelt felt like real parents, as well as Alderkit and Cloudkit feeling like real sisters. As he paced the camp, playing with warriors that had the time or stopping to curl up in the sunlight, Honeykit found himself remembering the feel of pine beneath his paws less and less. It distressed him, to say the least, as his memories of the ShadowClan camp merged with what he knew as the ThunderClan camp. He tried to convince himself that that should be a good thing, for he needed to stop thinking back on his old life in order to fully appreciate this one without regret or sadness, but he felt as if he would always have a piece of when he was _Sunkit_ lodged within his heart. A piece of Lizardstreak, Clawkit, Needlestar, the elder Palegaze...the whole of ShadowClan, except for Redbark.

Honeykit didn't often feel hot anger anymore as he had in StarClan, but every time he thought of the russet brown ShadowClan medicine cat he felt a burning fury twist within the deepest parts of his belly. He still blamed Redbark. He would be _Sunpaw_ by now if it weren't for him. But, at the same time, he liked being Honeykit now, as much as he could with grief for his old life swarming briefly within his heart on certain days. That didn't mean he would in any way see Redbark in a positive light, however. He had trusted the medicine cat to take care of him! Lizardstreak and Clawkit had depended on him, too!

"You didn't have to kick so hard!" Honeykit huffed as he got to his paws, Alderkit licking at her chest fur crossly.

"You didn't have to cheat!" Alderkit retorted, lifting her chin and grunting.

Cloudkit's amber gaze wasn't much amused- she had been less playful in recent moons. "He didn't cheat!"

"Yeah!" Honeykit flicked his ear in thanks at Cloudkit. " _You're_ the cheeeater."

Alderkit's shoulder fur bristled, and she whipped around, tail kinked high over her back. "Hmph! I'm gonna go get some prey, because you guys are mean to me!"

As his sister stomped off, Honeykit purred in amusement and padded over to his pale ginger and white sister, plopping down next to her and stretching out in the sunlight. In a few moons or so, leaf-fall would be approaching. He hoped to enjoy the warmth as long as he could.

As he observed the camp quietly, he watched as Ospreyclaw exited the shadows of the Highledge, black and white pelt ruffled. They watched as Sandpelt limped into the clearing with Poppy and Mousestep, the hunting patrol carrying abundant prey. Seeing as a patrol had returned, the deputy lifted their muzzle and beckoned to a group of warriors at the edges of the camp.

The white tom Frostpool was the first one to hop up and pad over, the dark cream she-cat Gorseflower quick to follow. The brown tabby she-cat Yarrowtail trailed behind, with Icewhisker right at her paws.

"I want you guys to go on a quick border patrol," the deputy grunted, their tail sweeping over the earth. "Check for any signs of rogues or kittypets. Turtlefrost says there's been some traces of them in our territory."

Gorseflower flexed her claws at this. "When will outside cats learn to stay away?"

"Never," Yarrowtail sniffed, while Frostpool began growling.

As the patrol headed out, Icewhisker looked around the clearing and turned to Milkpaw, the cream and white apprentice crouched outside the apprentices' den. The light grey she-cat flicked her heavily torn ears and beckoned for her apprentice to join the patrol, the cats exiting the camp through the thorn tunnel at last.

Honeykit shifted, eyes half lidded. _I wonder what being on border patrol is like, too. I'm sure it's not as fun as a hunting patrol, but..._

A dark grey, freckled flash suddenly charged towards Honeykit, and he yelped and scrambled to his paws, Cloudkit jumping back as Hailbird skidded to a halt in front of the kits, eyes wide with amusement.

"Heya, soon to be 'paws!" Hailbird mumbled past his mouthful of feathers, and with a soft thump the thrush that was held in his jaws fell to the kits' paws. "I saw Alderkit was eating, so I brought you guys some food."

"Thank you, Hailbird!" Cloudkit swiped her tongue over her jaws, and moved closer to the brown and white winged creature, crouching down and eagerly tearing off a wing, dragging it close to herself.

"Yeah! Thanks!" Honeykit brightened up as well and crouched, taking a large mouthful of the chewy meat into his mouth. Hailbird had become a sort of friend to the kits, in a way. He tussled with them when the other warriors were busy, and he gave them tips on apprenticeship, which Honeykit mostly drowned out in his own excited thoughts about becoming an apprentice in the first place.

"You're welcome!" Hailbird sat down, curling his tail over his front paws. "So, have any of your eyes set on a specific mentor?"

Honeykit didn't respond, instead focusing on digging into the thrush along with Cloudkit. He hadn't exactly thought about what cat he would want as a mentor. But, clearly, Cloudkit had, for she coughed on her mouthful of thrush and swallowed furiously, eyes lighting up.

"Goldensplash! She's awesome at hunting! I would say Ospreyclaw, because they're the _deputy_ , but deputies don't get apprentices, from what Mosswillow told me."

"Goldensplash is great at hunting," Hailbird nodded along in agreement. "I've been on a hunting patrol with her."

Honeykit pulled back from his meal to look at the warrior, ears pricking in wonder. "Oh yeah! What's it like being a warrior?"

"It's pretty nice!" Hailbird chuckled, twisting to lap a bit at his shoulder. "I don't like doing dawn patrols, but it's great to finally be able to do my own thing!"

"I can't wait to be a warrior," Cloudkit purred excitedly, claws sliding out as she slashed at the ground. "I'll chase off those rogues and kittypets that Ospreyclaw's so worried about!"

"Gotta make it to apprenticeship first!" Hailbird chuckled lightly, stretching and getting to his paws as the kits finished the thrush, pushing away the remains. "Want to help me put those stray feathers in Dapplebeam's nest?"

"Yes!" Honeykit jumped to his paws, grateful for something to do. Being excited for the next day where he would be a 'paw caused him to be restless and frustrated, and he didn't want to just lay around and tussle all day.

Cloudkit nodded and got to her paws as well, scooping up a few soft feathers in her jaws. Honeykit happily followed along, trying not to sneeze as he nosed a few of the feathers, gently settling them between his teeth. Hailbird helped out as well, scooping up the rest of the usable feathers from what remained of the thrush's corpse.

As the warrior led the kits to the woven elders' den surrounded with trimmed back bracken bushes, Mosswillow looked up from grooming Alderkit to purr, tail lifting happily at seeing her kits being productive already. Honeykit glowed with pride as he slipped into the nicely shaded elders' den.

Dapplebeam was in her moss lined nest, curled up peacefully. When she heard the cats enter, however, the old calico lifted her head, blinking blearily.

"Hi, Dapplebeam!" Hailbird mumbled past the feathers in his mouth, one flying out and fluttering to the ground. He lightly spat out the rest, Honeykit doing the same, though the feathers clung to his mouth stubbornly. Cloudkit had one stuck on her muzzle which she quickly brushed off after spatting out her own feathers.

"Brought me feathers for my nest, have you?" Dapplebeam croaked, purring softly as she shakily got to her paws, stepping out of her nest and using her tail to sweep off any debris stubbornly clinging to her pelt. "Thank you, Hailbird! You too, little ones."

As Honeykit, Cloudkit, and Hailbird scooped the feathers into the nest with their paws, using their claws to lightly tuck individual feathers in specific spots, Honeykit felt a warm, distant memory wash his pelt, soft paws rearranging feathers and outlining Dapplebeam's resting spot with them.

_"Do you think Palegaze would like more moss in his nest?" Sunkit squeaked quietly as he gently pawed at the heap of dark, damp moss in front of him. "Morningpetal brought it for me to play moss ball with it, but Clawkit said we should use it for something else!"_

_Lizardstreak's gaze was warm as she leaned down towards her cream and white son, rough tongue flicking at his ear affectionately. "That would be a wonderful idea! Do you think Hawkkit and Dapplekit would like to help?"_

_"Oh! Yes!" Sunkit eagerly bounced on his paws, and turned to look at his white pelted sister. "Clawkit! Momma said we can use the moss for Palegaze's nest! Go get Dapplekit and Hawkkit!"_

_In just a few moments, Clawkit hurried over to Sunkit with Dapplekit, who's calico coat was messy, and Hawkkit, who's pale grey fur was slightly mud splashed from where he had been playing with pine needles in a small puddle._

_All four kits working to grapple the heap of moss, they charged towards the elders' den, the blind light brown form of Palegaze snuggling into a bed of moss in their minds._

Honeykit felt a small twinge of grief as he finished tucking in the final feather, Dapplebeam purring and settling back down into her nest.

"It's wonderful! Thank you." Dapplebeam's gaze was soft as she snuggled deeper into her nest. "Thrush feathers are so soft!"

"If you ever need more, let us know!" Cloudkit puffed out her chest as she said this. "Honeykit, Alderkit, and I are becoming apprentices tomorrow! So we can hunt you a thrush any time!"

Dapplebeam let out an amused chuckle at this, and she nodded happily. "Of course! My own nest fixing party..."

Hailbird smiled and began to usher the kits out of the den. "We'll leave you to rest, ol' Dapple!"

"Ahhh, still up to that?" Dapplebeam rolled her eyes, but Honeykit could tell the elder held affection for the silly nickname her former apprentice had given her.

As Hailbird split off to meet up with the returning border patrol Ospreyclaw sent out earlier, Honeykit watched as Milkpaw lashed his tail back and forth. Honeykit had picked up on the apprentice's suddenly obvious distaste for Hailbird, and the kit didn't know what was wrong between the two.

"See ya later, Honeykit!" Cloudkit nudged her brother, and Honeykit watched as she ran towards Sandpelt, probably off to tell the kits' father about her good deed towards Dapplebeam. Honeykit smiled warmly and ran across camp and towards the nursery, knowing the sunlight still fell on that particular spot at the entrance of the den during this time of day.

Settling down in the sunlight, Honeykit allowed himself to listen to the border patrol's report, the warmth slithering past his fur and cascading over his skin.

"We didn't see any rogues," Icewhisker called as Ospreyclaw padded over to meet the patrol. "Only a kittypet."

"We chased them off!" Milkpaw added in harshly, and Honeykit noticed he had a blood slicked slash across his shoulder.

Frostpool's fur rippled uneasily, and he scuffed at the ground with one paw. "The kittypet actually put up a fight. But they saw they couldn't beat a whole patrol of cats, so they fled."

Honeykit blinked in surprise as Yarrowtail stepped up, a nasty patch of ripped fur on her leg showing. Gorseflower looked winded herself.

"Probably just an extra grumpy kittypet who wanted a fight," Ospreyclaw grunted, looking over the warriors and apprentice with concern flashing upon their features for a moment. "Yarrowtail and Milkpaw, go see Juniperwish. You too, Gorseflower, if you need to."

"No, I only need to rest." Gorseflower grumbled as she limped for the warriors' den. Milkpaw lashed his tail and stormed for the medicine den with Yarrowtail following closely behind.

Honeykit flicked his tail, settling his head down on his front paws. He always imagined kittypets as fat and lazy, but apparently they could fight, too. He hoped that the patrol showed that kittypet a lesson!

In the warmth of the sun, Honeykit's eyes began to slide shut before he knew it, and he was quickly snatched by sleep, being thrown into a pool of darkness as his body relaxed. He hoped, faintly, in the back of his mind, that no bad dreams would come to him.

After what felt like only a few seconds, Honeykit felt a prod in his side. Hissing softly, he twisted away, but then he was prodded again. Forcing his eyes open, he smacked his dry mouth tiredly and looked up wearily to see a blurred grey outline against the darkening sky. Mosswillow would be nudging him into the nursery soon...

It took Honeykit a few moments to recognize Juniperwish- the dark grey medicine cat of ThunderClan. Her eyes were serious, and the tabby kit froze as the she-cat began sniffing him over with a worried look on her features. The soft bursts of air that came from her investigating abruptly stopped as the medicine cat stepped back, whiskers drawing back for a moment.

"Sorry, Honeykit," the soft voice of the medicine cat murmured, and he stared in confusion as she began padding away. "Just...making sure you got up. Mosswillow's already gathering up Alderkit and Cloudkit. Best sleep well for your apprentice ceremony tomorrow."

Sure enough, Mosswillow and Sandpelt were in front of Honeykit within a few moments, a yawning Alderkit and a swaying Cloudkit between them. Sandpelt nudged Honeykit to his paws, and just like most nights, the family huddled in the nursery. They had had to make more nests since Honeykit, Alderkit, and Cloudkit were much larger now, but despite the crowded feeling of the den, the two warriors found the room to sleep safely next to their kits.

And as Honeykit began to easily fall back into a peaceful sleep with his head on Mosswillow's softly rising ginger flank, confusion at Juniperwish's sudden actions trying to prickle at his mind before he fell asleep, he faintly wondered who his mentor was going to be.


	7. 'Paws

Honeykit was absolutely thrilled from ears to tail-tip, his soft green eyes focused on the Highledge. The lichen guarded den where Lilystar often resided was dark, and from here the honey-gold tabby kit could not see the sleek ThunderClan leader. His breaths were ragged and shallow with sheer joy, and he hardly noticed Alderkit's shaking or Cloudkit's eager bouncing. This was the day. _His_ day. He would finally be a 'paw, finally go beyond what he knew, finally experience life for what it was.

"Oh, my babies..." Mosswillow's voice was hoarse as the ginger she-cat stepped closer to her kits, the darker ginger markings running down her flanks as smooth as ever due to her copious grooming at dawn. She had groomed her kits down to the last hair that morning as well, and Honeykit had squirmed nearly as much as Alderkit, but he knew he looked like a proper apprentice now, fur sleek and healthy.

"I can't believe you're going to be apprentices," Sandpelt's green gaze was filled with such deep pools of warmth and pride, that Honeykit's excitement was briefly cut off by wave after wave of emotion that made the kit's paws tingle. His father was _proud_.

With such emotion lashing at him, a sudden wave of grief threatened to make Honeykit's ears flatten. He briefly looked down at his trembling paws, feeling his eyes grow hot as he fought back a sudden onslaught of tears that threatened to gather and spill down his face. _Lizardstreak's not here to watch me become an apprentice. Clawkit isn't standing beside me, becoming Clawpaw with me. Snakefang and Maplepelt aren't here to cheer me on. No cat in ShadowClan is..._

Lashing his tail, Honeykit forced the thoughts away with a series of rapid blinks to chase away any tears rimming his eyes. No. This was a wonderfully huge day for him, and he was immensely grateful that he would be becoming a 'paw in the first place. This wasn't the time to miss ShadowClan. This day would mark new experiences, a truly new life...

"Ohhh gosh, hurry up Lilystar!" Alderkit cried as she struggled to contain herself, whsikers twitching furiously as the dark ginger and white flecked she-kit began to pace in a circle, tail up high and small claws scuffing the earth.

"I can't wait any longer!" Cloudkit dropped down into a crouch, pale ginger and white splotched fur still holding visible fluff despite the vigorus grooming Mosswillow had put forth on all three of her kits. "I think I'm going to _die_ from waiting!"

"Nonsense," Mosswillow purred softly, stepping beside the she-kit and gently sweeping her tail over her fluffy back. "Just a little while longer."

Honeykit connected with both of his sisters when it came to their current feelings- he felt as if he'd be an _elder_ before the ceremony even started. He fought his hardest to stay still and wait patiently as a warm greenleaf breeze came over him, softly nipping at his pricked ears, but his muscles twitched furiously and begged for him to run around the camp and back to release some of the excitement flooding him, threatening to crush his chest as he forced his feelings down, only showing them with flicks of his tail.

Finally, after what seemed like moons, the sleek silver tabby leader slid out from his rocky den upon the Highledge, his pelt as neat as always as he swiveled his ears, looking down upon the fidgeting kits as Ospreyclaw exited the den behind him, their gruesome scar pale in the shadows of the massive rock.

Mosswillow dipped her head to the leader, her amber eyes wide. Sandpelt's claws were buried in the ground as he tried to contain his own overwhelming pride, and upon noticing his parents' reactions, Honeykit finally broke loose and gave a little jump, his siblings weaving around him with excited mewls.

_This is it._

Lilystar beamed at the kits, and gave his tail a swirl before he nodded to his deputy and leaped gracefully forward, nimbly picking his way up to the top of the Highledge. Ospreyclaw sat where they were, giving their white chest fur a lick. The usually soft spoken and collected deputy glanced over at the kits, and Honeykit glimpsed the smallest hint of a smile.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" Lilystar yowled to the wonderfully clear sky, the cats picking at their morning meals looking up, startled. The warriors just waking up blinked blearily and padded into the clearing, the cats muttering and whispering as their pelts brushed one another, the crowd coming together to form.

"Alright! This is it!" Sandpelt limped towards the crowd, and Mosswillow nudged her kits softly with her muzzle to get them to stop their pacing and to follow their father.

"I'm so proud of you guys," the she-cat was murmuring, her voice thick with emotion. "So proud."

Honeykit found that, as he walked, his legs trembled and he could hardly get himself to follow his squealing sisters to the front of the crowd. He felt so immensely excited that his head swirled enough to make him feel blindingly dizzy, and his chest was tight and pounding with the clashing emotions dwelling in his mind.

_I've been a kit before. Played games before, tussled with warriors before...but this is new. I've never been an apprentice. Oh, StarClan, thank you! I'm finally making my family proud, finally getting to grow..._

Honeykit nearly collapsed on his flank as he shakily sat down beside Alderkit and Cloudkit, aware of his parents watching them with glimmering tears in their eyes, gazes glassy as they witnessed their first litter finally becoming apprentices. Honeykit felt like sobbing himself. This was more than excitement for him.

Lilystar gave a flick of his paw to quiet the wild whispers of his Clan, and his soft gaze fell upon the shaking kits below, at their wildly twitching ears and trembling paws.

_It's happening! I never imagined getting this far._

"ThunderClan. I called you together today for one of the best ceremonies a leader can conduct," Lilystar began with his usually bold voice carrying clearly to ever cats' pricked ears down below, his authoritative gaze sweeping the whole Clan as he continued confidently. "Six moons ago, we were blessed with a healthy litter of three kits from Mosswillow and Sandpelt. These kits grew up without any complications, and they have made it to this important day. These kits are ready to begin their training, and to assist this glorious Clan in the moons to come."

Honeykit felt his paws sway beneath him. His throat was unbearably dry, and he didn't know how he would manage to get through this ceremony. This was so greatly important to him.

Lilystar shifted his shoulders, and then stepped closer to the edge of the towering rock he stood powerfully upon. "Alderkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is your time to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you recieve your warrior name, you will be known as Alderpaw. Your mentor will be Mousestep. I hope Mousestep will pass down all he knows to you."

As Lilystar beckoned for the surprised short grey tabby tom, Alderpaw squealed so loudly a few of the warriors chuckled fondly, while the new apprentice eagerly watched as Mousestep finally made his way to the front of the crowd.

"Mousestep," Lilystar nodded down at the warrior, whiskers twitching as he continued on with the ceremony. "You are ready to take on an apprentice. You have recieved excellent training from Ospreyclaw in the past, and you have shown yourself to be loyal and patient. You will be the mentor of Alderpaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to her."

Alderpaw was so excited that when she touched noses with Mousestep, she roughly butted her muzzle into his, causing the warrior to grunt and stumble back. Scurrying backwards, the hyperactive she-cat launched towards her awaiting parents, who were purring and awaiting to nuzzle her.

Honeykit took a long, deep breath as Lilystar awaited for the cheers of Alderpaw's name to settle down. Then, with affection, the leader's gaze locked onto Honeykit. He felt as if his heart exploded in that very moment.

"Honeykit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is your time to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you recieve your warrior name, you will be known as Honeypaw. Your mentor will be Hawklily. I hope Hawklily will pass down all she knows to you."

Honeypaw barely noticed as the dilute tortoiseshell in question padded forward, tail lifted excitedly. He felt warm waves of joy sweep him away into groves of happiness, and he just barely managed to pick up on Lilystar's next words.

"Hawklily, you are ready to take on an apprentice. You have recieved excellent training from the sadly gone Squirrelpounce in the past, and you have shown yourself to be protective and fierecly loyal. You will be the mentor of Honeypaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to him."

Honeypaw swallowed and turned to the she-cat who was his mentor, his breathless happiness drowning out the cries of his new name. He shakily touched his nose with her, feeling his legs threaten to buckle.

_I did it! I made it!_

Stumbling away from the warrior, he hurried for his parents who were eagerly awaiting him. As his tabby self barreled into Mosswillow, the she-cat purred softly and nuzzled her son, pressing her warm cheek against his. He felt a joyful sob ripple within his chest.

_"Momma, do apprentices go down to the lake?" Sunkit nestled against his cream and white streaked mother, feeling her heart beat faintly within her body. "Do they get to see it?"_

_"Of course," Lizardstreak purred, nuzzling his cheek with her nose, the rumbling of her purr growing louder as Clawkit dug her paws into her flank and hauled herself up onto the she-cat, wobbling proudly on top of the mound of fur._

_"I wanna swim!" Clawkit squeaked down at her brother, and Sunkit stuck out his tongue and shivered._

_"That's for RiverClan cats to do! I don't want my fur being all icky!" Sunkit puffed, and Clawkit rolled her eyes, white fur ruffled._

_"You're just a wimp!"_

_"Nuh-uhh!"_

_"Yuh-huh!"_

_"N-"_

_"Alright, you two," Lizardstreak gently cut in, warm gaze filled with such deep love and care for her two young kits. "Shush. You can worry about the lake when you're 'paws."_

Honeypaw didn't realize he had drifted off in his own emotions until his pale ginger and white sister barreled forward to meet up with the rest of her family, her eyes stretched as wide as the full moon.

"I'm so glad I got Goldensplash!" Cloudpaw cried, weaving around Sandpelt, who was absolutely glowing with pride in his kits. "I really wanted her as a mentor!"

_Oh gosh! I missed seeing Cloudpaw's ceremony._

Feeling a small twinge of guilt, Honeypaw watched as Alderpaw jumped up, paws sprinkled with sandy dirt from her constant movement. Blinking, the tabby tom watched his sister charge over to Mousestep as the Clan began to split up from the meeting, mewling their congratulations at the new 'paws and their parents.

"Well, off you go!" Mosswillow nudged Honeypaw, and he looked up at her soft, proud expression, vision a bit blurred from his brief crying. "Hawklily's waiting."

Honeypaw, trembling, turned to see that his new mentor was indeed waiting for him. Feeling his chest explode with joy, the tom launched towards the she-cat, a sense of fulfillment filling his heart.

He had made it.

\- - -

"And this is the Sky Oak. This is where you bunch will learn to climb." Hawklily padded up to the massive roots of the ancient tree, a small scattering of chipped bark raining down to the forest floor as a squirrel scurried up into the higher branches. Honeypaw stared up at the oak tree that indeed seemed to reach into the clouds, the thick branches nearly blotting out the bright blue sky with their growths of dark green leaves.

ThunderClan's territory was absolutely incredible! After swiftly downing some fresh-kill, the new apprentices were taken out for the routine tour of the territory with their mentors, the warriors taking them to important spots since there was no way they could traverse every inch of the undergrowth laden forest in one day. Honeypaw's intense swirl of emotion had numbed by now, but he still felt little thrills as he gaped at every new part of the territory.

It was hard for him to finally grapple the fact that he was now an apprentice. It was an extremely odd feeling to not have any memories from his past life relating to moments like these for him to go back on and relate to. This was completely new for him, and seeing the thriving bracken and ferns made any small ounces of apprehension surrounding the circumstances of how he gained this new life that was left vanished. He was meant to be here. Meant to lead this path.

Not only that, but the forest was beautiful. It was absolutely teeming with hidden prey rustling among the lush vegetation, and the sunlight that gleamed strongly above cascaded down upon the tree tops, leaving the greenery dappled with wonderful sunshine. Honeypaw's senses were absolutely overwhelmed as well- the waterfall of new scents twisting upon his tongue and the new sights straining his eyes as he tried to take in every miniscule detail made his body work extra hard to comprehend everything around him. By now, the warriors had shown the new apprentices the Greenleaf Twolegplace, which had a few Twolegs milling about among brightly colored leaf like things that the Twolegs sometimes ducked and crawled into. Honeypaw had never actually seen Twolegs before that moment, so he trembled anxiously under the bracken the group of cats had hid under. They only had fur atop their heads! They were so odd and alarming to look at.

The mentors also showed the young cats the abandoned Twoleg nest, which was bursting with herbs at this time in greenleaf. Bright flowers and shiny leaves brushed against the rotting wood of the area, and it gave off an ominous vibe that made Honeypaw bristle. On the way to the Sky Oak, the warriors had briefly shown the apprentices an old thunderpath marked off with blue Twoleg markers, but they mostly steered away from it.

"My paws already hurt," Alderpaw whined as she tugged a back paw free from the undergrowth the group was padding through now, her ears flattened back pathetically. "How much longer until this tour is over?"

"A lot longer," Mousestep shot his new apprentice a sympathetic glance as she whined loudly, making Goldensplash flick her ear from where she was keeping pace with Cloudpaw.

"We have two more spots to show you," Hawklily's smooth voice mewled, the sound soft in the forest that echoed with birdsong. "One of those includes the lake shore, which is at the farthest reaches of our territory. Plus the way back."

"Oh my StarClan!" Alderpaw cried, stumbling in mock exhaustion. "But my paw pads!"

Honeypaw couldn't help but to roll his eyes at his sister. Why wasn't she more excited? This was amazing! Yes, his paw pads were tingling and beginning to ache, but this was a significant day in their lives! This was the territory he would be patrolling and hunting in for many moons to come. Where he'd finally get to live out a full life. Yes, it didn't have soft pine needles or marshy earth, but this was good too! The constant woody smell mixed with the meatiness of prey gave Honeypaw a sense of deep belonging. StarClan definitely meant for him to get this chance!

"Hang in there," Mousestep tried to encourage the dark ginger and white she-cat, but she just whined a bit more. "We're almost to the next stop."

Taking a turn through the trees, the older felines padded expertly over hidden tree roots and rabbit burrows dug into the ground, and Honeypaw tried to follow their turns accurately as not to get his paw stuck in one of said burrows. He hissed lightly when a thorn lashed at his hindquarters as he wriggled past some stiff bracken, but other than that his delicate steps were enough for him to keep up with Hawklily.

Goldensplash trotted ahead as the cats drew nearer to a wide opening between trees, her warm golden pelt and darker golden markings weaving among said trees. Cloudpaw hurried to keep up, her gaze filled with admiration for her mentor. Alderpaw and Mousestep followed more slowly, with Honeypaw eagerly bouncing forward with Hawklily at his tail.

"This is the training clearing," Goldensplah gestured with a darker golden paw at the sandy hollow among the ring of trees, the ground there noticeably scuffed up with claw marks and paw prints from Milkpaw, as Honeypaw guessed. "This is where you'll train to hunt and fight."

As Honeypaw stared at the hollow, his chest fluttering, he pictured him and Hawklily wrestling with claws carefully sheathed, him preparing to defend his Clan with tooth and claw. Then he imagined himself creeping forward towards Hawlily's tail, pouncing as if it were a fat vole that would help sustain the Clan...

"When do we start training?" Cloudpaw squeaked out with a bit of hesitance weaving into her tone, and when Honeypaw looked over he saw her shuffling her paws as Goldensplash turned her attention on the apprentice. Clearly his sister admired her mentor to the point where it made her shy. He couldn't hold back the beginnings of a purr from erupting.

Goldensplash stretched for a moment, muscles quivering as she arched her back, then she stood straight once more, smacking her jaws in thought. "Hm...I think teaching the hunter's crouch can come in tomorrow."

Alderpaw let out a little sigh of relief, gingerly taking one paw off the leaf litter laced ground and giving it a little shake. "I'm glad we aren't today! I feel like I've been walking for moons..."

Honeypaw gently nudged his sister with his shoulder, and she wobbled, squeaking. "Lazy."

Mousestep purred in amusement as Alderpaw grumbled crossly, and Hawklily gave a playful roll of her eyes.

After the cats observed the training hollow for a few more moments, Hawklily took the lead, causing Honeypaw to keep pace with her brisk steps. By now, his paw pads ached every time they pressed against the compact earth that had been tread by generations of cats time and time again. That thought alone distracted him from his discomfort, and he took each step with pride. He was meant to be here. Meant to step on this earth.

Traveling through the thick, comfortingly warm forest became difficult as the warriors led their apprentices down to the lake. From where he was, Honeypaw could taste a watery scent on the air, and when he breathed the air was a bit damp. The trees were beginning to finally thin out, and by the time the apprentices made it to the tree line, Honeypaw's legs were distressingly sore. Alderpaw was moaning and groaning to Mousestep, and Cloudpaw winced every time one of her paws pressed against the ground.

Honeypaw felt the words lingering on his tongue vanish, as he caught sight of the shore and the lake in front of him. He let out a quiet, just audible gasp.

A body of water that was so much wider than any puddle, any stream Honeypaw had seen, stretched as far as he could see. The shore constricted it like a sluggish adder, and the shore on the opposite side was a tiny line of pale, nearly white sand. There were so many blaring details clashing with miniscule ones that Honeypaw had to direct his gaze to the water to focus on the deep darkness of it, the sun's gleam against the surface.

"W...wow..." Alderpaw breathed, close enough for Honeypaw to feel the warm air exiting her muzzle. "Oh gosh..."

"Worth getting sore paws?" Mousestep mused playfully, and Alderpaw nodded dumbly, as if she could hardly focus on anything except the lake.

Honeypaw himself felt rooted to the ground as he gaped at the water, rippling serenely in the daylight.

"Well?" Hawklily stepped up to Honeypaw, her dilute tortoiseshell pelt softly dappled with sunshine. "What do ya think?"

After fumbling for words for a few long moments, Honeypaw turned his head to gaze at his mentor, aware of how much of a tiny kit he must of looked like in that moment. "It's...incredible!"

Cloudpaw was the first to finally move. Shaking her pale pelt to dislodge her shock, she stepped tentatively forward and padded down the slope and onto the shore, letting out a squeak as a front paw met the sand.

Spurred on by his sister, Honeypaw gave a swift lick to his darker honey chest fur and sprang down the slope eagerly, trying to ignore the strain in his legs. All four paws met sand at once, and he squealed at the odd feeling of something warm and grainy pricking his numb paw pads. They sank a little into the ground, and he lifted a darker paw out of the sand, shaking it free of most of the grains, though some stuck stubbornly in between his claws.

With a loud thump, Alderpaw came skidding onto the shore, squealing as she tripped and rolled over, the sand clinging to her pelt like burrs. "Ah!"

"Haaaa!" Hawklily purred as she stepped lightly onto the beach, flicking an ear casually. "Reminds me of when I was an apprentice. You'll get used to the feeling."

Mousestep and Goldensplash ran down together, not reacting as their own paws hit the sand. Honeypaw tried to act like the sensation wasn't weird by taking a few steps, swallowing back little squeaks.

Though, at the same time, these foreign feelings were welcome to Honeypaw- they warmed his pelt and relaxed his mind. New experiences...new experiences just reminded him that he was lucky to be alive again, lucky to see new things and live a full life. And when he charged across the sand, paws sliding on wet and slippery pebbles lining the water's edge, he felt a thrill travel down to his tail. He loved this. He loved laughing along with his mentor, loved being a 'paw, loved soaking in the fact that he got to live this life.

"OHHHH StarClan that is so COLD!" Alderpaw suddenly yowled, jumping back from the water with soaked forelegs. Mousestep was up to his belly fur in the lake water, and his tail lashed in amusement.

"It is not!" Cloudpaw huffed, taking a step into the water. Honeypaw saw her just barely bite back a squeal, and he snorted as she took another step in, her face screwing up in discomfort. "S...see? You're just a...mousebrain, Alderpaw!"

Honeypaw reached out experimentally with a paw, dabbing at the water. It was sort of cold, despite the pleasant weather, and his sore paw pad recoiled as it dabbed at the water's chilled surface.

Goldensplash settled down further back on the sand, as if she didn't quite like being near the water. She watched as Cloudpaw tried to step further into the lake's water to prove that she was tougher than Alderpaw with amusement in her soft gaze.

Hawklily didn't quite touch the water either, unlike Mousestep who had his eyes closed as he soaked in the softly rippling liquid. Instead, the she-cat softly moved about pebbles with her front paws, and Honeypaw assumed she was just playing around with them until she bent her head down and started sniffing lightly, using her claws to flip over the lake washed rocks.

"What are you doing?" Honeypaw meowed softly, and Hawklily paused her shifting about. She blinked and looked up at her apprentice's curious features.

"I'm trying to find a colorful enough pebble," Hawklily resumed her search as soon as the words left her, and after a few moments of relative silence apart from Cloudpaw and Alderpaw letting out high pitched squeals, the she-cat stopped again, pulling out a round, pale orange pebble. "Aha! This one's good."

"What's it for?" Honeypaw leaned forward to sniff at the damp pebble, feeling a small ember of wonder spring up in his chest. In ShadowClan, he had never seen colorful rocks before. Just dull grey and off-white ones.

"A gift." Was all Hawklily meowed before leaning down and taking the pebble into her mouth, presumably tucking it under her tongue so she could carry it easier. Voice a bit muffled by this, Hawklily flicked her head at the cats partly submerged in the water. "Come on. The apprentices are probably exhausted. It's time we head home."

\- - -

Honeypaw dragged himself towards the appentices' den, honey-gold tabby pelt a wreck compared to how sleek it had been in the morning. His legs ached and screamed for him to collapse and pass out for the night, but he knew he had to make it into an actual den first. Luckily, it was late by the time the apprentices and their mentors came back, some still soaked from the lake. Alderpaw and Cloudpaw had already made it to the apprentices' den, but Honeypaw had stopped to talk to Hailbird, who had come back from an evening hunting patrol. The warrior had caught sight of him and had taken the time to congraulate him on his apprenticeship, and to joke about his own experience on his tour of the territory where Dapplebeam had had to pull him out of the lake after he fell in.

His paw pads felt like they were absolutely ripped apart from the long walk to the lake and back to the camp, and his head felt as heavy as the Sky Oak with all of the new information he'd taken in. Mosswillow and Sandpelt were, luckily, on patrol, so Honeypaw was able to slip into the apprentices' den without any further interruptions, his legs buckling beneath him as soon as he stepped into a nest that probably needed to be replaced due to the dusty scent of it, and how old it must of been judging by how prickly it felt underpaw. He grunted and hissed as his sore limbs released the pressure of his weight, and he felt his eyes slide close easily. He hadn't had time to eat, but he was too exhausted to worry about filling his belly now.

The day had been wonderful, and it would be one that Honeypaw would cherish for the rest of his life. He had never seen anything beyond a Clan camp before, and truly seeing just how big and vast the world seemed to be left him absolutely breathless. He had so many scents and sights he had to remember now, and he was thrilled at the thought that one day, he'd be a warrior that knew every inch of the territory like the back of his own paw. He was stunned, to say the least. In a state of shock. He had no idea to describe his own feelings and emotions. They were just there, thriving and writhing. This was what he had yearned for in StarClan, when he was _Sunkit_. And he couldn't be happier.

_If only Lizardstreak...if only I...could see what ShadowClan's territory is like...if only I could of been...Sunpaw..._

Aching muscles relaxing and mind falling back into the release of deep sleep, Honeypaw let the blackness of rest take him.

But then his eyes were shooting open again.

He...seemed to be in an open field of flowers, in hues of cerulean and violet. The sky overhead was tinted pink and covered in small white stars, and there were no trees in sight. Honeypaw blinked blearily and stepped back, feeling a flower bend under his paw's weight. Distantly, he thought this must be StarClan, and he felt a pang of panic, but then he remembered this field was similar to one in a past dream...

A crackle, much like a twig being snapped, was heard, and Honeypaw whipped around, pale green grass around him sweeping along with his body. He blinked rapidly and squinted, feeling the fur along his back bristle. The shadowy form of a cat was a few fox lengths away.

At least, he assumed it was a cat. It was highly disfigured.

The feline like form began to pad closer, desperation in its step. Honeypaw began stepping backward, feeling an instinctive fear at this approaching stranger. When the dark form began to pick up pace, Honeypaw scrabbled back and whipped back around, feeling his body completely command him as he began charging away, running and running...he didn't feel himself running, didn't feel his paws hit the ground. He felt light, like a thrush feather, and he was only aware of his shoulders lurching forward as he ran. He didn't know how long he quietly darted along, but when he suddenly rammed into an invisible force, he yelped and collapsed, skidding back on his flank.

Wincing, he sat up, only to cry out in dismay as the flowers wilted into limp stalks, and a deep crimson liquid oozed up from the ground. What was going on? The world around him was turning to rotting browns and russets, the sky becoming an empty black. Honeypaw looked for the shadowed figure, but it was not in sight. Panic bubbling in the apprentice's chest, he tried running the way he came, only to be pinned to the ground, all air leaving him. Another shadowy, feline like creature. Then another, and another, and another...until Honeypaw was drowning in shadows.

Gasping, Honeypaw's green eyes flew open, his head darting up and his flanks heaving as he took shallow, panicked breaths. He swung his head to and fro, looking for shadowy figures...but he only saw Alderpaw, Cloudpaw, and the ruffled pelt of Milkpaw in the pale moonlight shining through the woven apprentices' den. Swallowing, Honeypaw willed for his heart to calm down, and he settled his head back into his bracken lined nest.

_The first bad dream in a long time...what's going on with me?_

Honeypaw curled up further, feeling distress try to claw away his need to sleep.

These dreams were becoming too similar to be happening for no reason. Too distressing. Honeypaw suddenly felt hot bile rise to the back of his throat, and he gave a harsh shudder.

Did he need to tell Juniperwish about his dreams? Was something wrong with him?

Panicked at the thought of the medicine cat, and the thought that something might be wrong with him, Honeypaw covered his head with his front paws, feeling furious lashes of worry sink deep into his pelt.

_What's going on...?_


	8. StarClan's Will

The deep green forest was filled with countless chirps and cries, forming an intricate melody of birdsong as the undergrowth tilted in the soft breeze weaving throughout the trees and ferns, and the sunlight that fell without complication upon the sandy hollow burned into his pelt, just teetering on what was the line between comfortable and uncomfortable. He took a soft breath, muzzle low to the ground, and slowly, carefully, he moved a paw forward and-

"Honeypaw," the soft she-cat's voice interrupted the tabby's movement, causing him to wobble with one paw hovering above the ground. "Your stillness and patience for movement is wonderful, but your tail keeps dragging on the ground, and your hind legs are too far out. Your leap would miss your prey, which may already be gone because of the noise your tail would have caused."

Honeypaw felt a small ripple of embarrassment prick his honey-gold pelt, but he nodded to his pale tortoiseshell mentor in understanding. Keeping Hawklily's points swirling in his mind, he shifted his shoulders and brought his hind legs closer to his body, making sure his darker honey belly fur lightly brushed the ground. He kept his front paws locked just beneath his chest, allowing room for silent movement, and lifted his tail above the sandy earth below him, making sure he was hyperaware of its presence.

"Good," Hawklily mewled in satisfaction, her warm approval sending a proud shock down Honeypaw's stiffened spine. "Now move forward with caution, but move fast enough for you to ensure the prey doesn't leave the area."

Honeypaw gave a brisk nod and took a deep breath, focusing individually on each part of his lowered body to make sure they were properly placed. The sooner he perfected the hunter's crouch, the better. Luckily, Alderpaw and Cloudpaw were just outside the clearing with their mentors to learn- it gave them all individual space free of distraction. Lightly wriggling his hindquarters in anticipation, Honeypaw drew one paw forward and delicately applied pressure, feeling the grainy dirt sink lightly under his pads.

Hawklily stayed silent, so Honeypaw took that as an indication that he was doing well. Bringing all of his focus on a stray bracken tendril spilling out into the edge of the hollow, the apprentice rose his tail a bit further from the ground and began to steadily approach the vegetation, his whiskers twitching. He felt as if he were completely silent, giving him a proud confidence burst as he stopped a few mouse lengths from the tendril. He stilled his breath, gaze locked on his target, and bunched all of his energy into his hindquarters. Tensing his front paws in preparation, the tom gave a small little yowl and leaped into the air, front paws coming down and slamming against the tendril. When he felt it snap sharply underpaw, he panted in satisfaction, turning to look at the dilute tortoiseshell warrior watching him with alert attention.

"Well done," Hawklily purred lightly, the sound a crackling rumble. "Practice is much needed, but you did very well that time around!"

Honeypaw let out a breathy sigh of relief, getting to his paws and shaking out his pelt, lightly removing his paws from the snapped bracken tendril.

_I'm doing it! I'm learning how to hunt!_

This was what Honeypaw had always wanted. To know what it felt like to be a warrior, to know with every miniscule twitch his muscles made that he was working towards his ability to assist his Clan with every drop of blood and every trapped breath within his lungs. It felt incredible to finally train, to finally be a 'paw. He wasn't quite over the day before, or the crashes of emotions that swept him away with every pawstep he took.

Along with that, however, was the prickling thoughts of the alarming dream he had had the night before, of the shadowy beings and the wilting flowers that seemed to have their roots drowned with thick blood within the darkness. Frowning, Honeypaw tried to shake the thought away as he trotted back over to his mentor. No. It was just a bad dream. Every cat had bad dreams. There was no reason to panic, no reason to run to Juniperwish, which he hadn't exactly desired to do in the first place. He was fine. The dreams couldn't mean anything- if they did, why would StarClan let him be an apprentice? If they were angry with him, they wouldn't want him gliding in his own joy. Satisfied with that thought, Honeypaw shoved the lingering panic from the dream away. He had training to devote all of his focus to.

"Usually apprentices focus on the hunter's crouch for the first day," Hawklily mumbled, lifting a foreleg and giving it a straining stretch. "So go ahead and-"

"Honeypaw!" A squeal sharply broke off the warrior, and Honeypaw turned abruptly to see a dark ginger and pale white blur skid into the clearing, kicking up a cloud of sand that hovered in the air like a choking mist. "How is your training going?!"

"Alderpaw!" A short silver tabby stood a few fox-lengths away, an exasperated look in his eyes as his paws touched the beginnings of the sandy earth. "You can't just interrupt someone's training like that!"

"Sorry Mousestep!" Alderpaw mewled, though her face didn't carry a single ounce of apology. "Have ya got that hunter's crouch down yet?! I can't stay still long enough for it, it's too tedious!"

Hawklily lashed her tail, thumping it dully against the ground.

Honeypaw glanced at his mentor, wincing, and flicked his ear at his sister, who's chest was rising and falling rapidly from her excited panting. "I don't have it down, yet, but I'm doing okay!"

"Awesome!" Alderpaw stumbled backwards, paws slipping on the sand. "Well, I'll go now before Mousestep claws my ears off! Good luck!" Whipping around, his sister sprang towards her awaiting mentor, who gave a hollow little yelp and ducked out of the way as the apprentice clumsily landed.

Hawklily gave a grunt, then twisted to lap at her shoulder to smooth the fur. "Alright, then. Get into the hunter's crouch again, but this time aim for that beetle."

Honeypaw jumped to attention, and eagerly dropped down into a crouch, adjusting his body to make sure it was absolutely perfect...

\- - -

"Some good moss trees are up ahead," Milkpaw flicked his ear down the trail, where Honeypaw could just make out a shadowed bunch of trees hidden from the sunlight. "I usually find a lot of moss over here."

Honeypaw shook out his pelt as he lightly stepped over a twig, his ears swiveling at every crackle within the massive forest. "Do you know your way around everywhere?"

Milkpaw took a sharp turn through a dense patch of undergrowth, and Honeypaw just barely stopped himself from running into a growth of brambles as he turned less gracefully, jumping a bit to keep up with the cream and white tom ahead.

"Yeah," the other apprentice mewled as he stepped into the beginnings of the shadowed tress, his whiskers drawn back as he stopped next to an oak tree that looked quite young and small compared to the other towering oaks looming around it. "Gonna be a warrior in two moons, after all."

Honeypaw pulled up next to the other tom, and leaned forward to sniff at the large growth of moss clinging stubbornly to the young oak's bark, the surface of it lush and soft as if it were at the peak of its heath. Satisfied, he lifted his front paws up to the moss and began to carefully tug it off with his claws, trying to keep any messes to a minimum.

After training, Honeypaw had retreated to the apprentices' den to relax his aching muscles, and once he had stepped into his nest he remembered he needed to clean out the old, prickly mess. Milkpaw had entered the den a few minutes later and had picked up on Honeypaw's distaste- and so he had offered to take him out of camp to find some moss and bracken stalks to build him a new nest.

And as Honeypaw successfully removed a clump of the dark green vegetation, lightly plopping it down to the floor to tear off another strip, the grateful emotions that usually swam in his head on most days came back to him. He truly was an apprentice now. Doing regular, mundane, apprentice things. But those small, typical actions made his heart swell- this was what he had always yearned for.

Honeypaw tore off yet another clump, and after setting it down he deduced that the amount he had collected was good enough. Nodding to Milkpaw, who had padded a few steps away to nip off some bracken stalks to carry, he leaned down and gathered the strips of moss into his mouth, trying not to bite down too hard on the delicate, earthy tasting bundles.

Milkpaw, head tilted as he dragged the stalks, led the way once more, clawing aside particularly tangled undergrowth and using his tail to sweep away twigs so that the path for Honeypaw was relatively clear, since the tom couldn't really glance down to check where he was stepping with the moss blocking his view of the ground.

ThunderClan's territory really was beautiful- even if at times it was hard to pad through. Honeypaw knew he would grow accustomed to it as the moons went by, and he couldn't wait until one day, perhaps, he showed his own apprentice the territory's landmarks. Thinking so far ahead into the hazy future made Honeypaw's head swim as if he ducked his head under the lake's surface for too long, but at the same time it made warmth flood his pelt.

When the two apprentices finally approached the steep ThunderClan camp, they struggled through the thorn tunnel, trying to not let the brambles snag onto their carried cargo. Once they finally padded down into the clearing, the two brushed pelts and stepped into the pale apprentices' den, dropping the bracken and moss with soft thuds.

"I'll help you make your nest, since you haven't done it before," Milkpaw leaned down and nosed the plucked vegetation together. "First, you start with the bracken."

Honeypaw fell back on his haunches as Milkpaw used his front paws to drag the bracken closer, his claws helping to bend the stalks as he began overlapping the plants.

"It doesn't have to be tightly bound," Milkpaw was explaining quietly, focused as he tucked one stalk under the other, bending the leafage in a way that looked like the plant would snap at any given second. "Just enough to stay sturdy."

Honeypaw let a soft, rumbling purr rise up into his throat- a sound of approval as Milkpaw finished his nimble work with the bracken, gently sliding the nest across the den's compact ground. The tabby tom got to his paws and started to bat the moss over to the nest, the strips softly tickling his delicate pink paw pads.

"Suppose you've got the moss, then," Milkpaw grunted as he got back to his own paws, cream tail sweeping through the air as if clearing away bothersome dust. "I'll leave you to it."

With something akin to sharp frustration flashing in his gaze, Milkpaw turned and trudged out of the den, Honeypaw blinking in the dimness of the den after him, not quite sure what was bothering the other tom. Frowning, he dragged his attention back to his nest and unraveled the strips of moss, using his claws to precisely tuck the squishy plant in specific places within his woven nest.

\- - -

"Ohhh I ate way too much rabbit," Alderpaw hissed as she pushed past Honeypaw, the moonlight shining against her fur as she eagerly slid over to her nest, claws caked with dirt as if she had been running throughout the whole day. "But it's Mousestep's fault I was so hungry! He made me practice the hunter's crouch too much today!"

"That wouldn't make you hungry!" Cloudpaw rolled her eyes as she followed her littermates into the den, pale ginger and white fur neatly groomed. "Today was only the first day of training, and you couldn't handle it!"

"Shuuush!" Alderpaw whined, stepping into her nest and flopping into it, a feather lodged within it fluttering briefly up into the air.

Honeypaw shook his head and smothered a yawn that threatened to release from his muzzle. He padded over to the nest he and Milkpaw had built, and blissfully buckled down into the soft, fresh nest, feeling a bit of moss cradle his chin as he rested his head down into the nest, eyes fluttering shut as he drowned out the quiet bickering of his sisters.

The day had been beyond wonderful for Honeypaw! He knew this was just the first taste, the first nibble out of the full apprentice experience, but he felt as if this single day could carry him along forever, fulfill him forever. He couldn't get over just how glad he was to be in the living world, experiencing these things. His thoughts were the same repetitive emotions most times, but all the same the things he felt made him feel light and filled to the brim with joy.

After rebuilding his nest, Honeypaw had spent the rest of the evening munching down on a mouse and rolling over in the fading sunlight until the last ounce of warmth drained from the sky. He had to get to bed early, after all. He had things to do now. The day had seemed to fly by for him- much too fast than he'd imagined. He guessed it was because of his excitement and eagerness to do anything for any cat. He would make sure to take the next day slower, to soak in every moment of the day insetad of letting it all morph into a blur.

_I can't...wait...for tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day..._

Drifting off, Honeypaw's thoughts fell into a gentle slumber as sleep clawed for the apprentice, dragging him down into darkness and peace. But, yet again, as soon as he closed his eyes, he was ripped back into awareness once more, thrown into a forest much like ThunderClan's territory.

Honeypaw's first thought was that he was having another bad dream, which made dread sink down into the deepest pits of his belly like a heavy stone being thrown into the lake, but when star-freckled felines slowly stepped out from among the trees, he knew this wasn't a nightmare. But it was quite similar to one, to Honeypaw, at least.

"S-StarClan-" Honeypaw gasped out sharply, the sound small and frail in the bright clearing he was settled in. The soft trees seemed to lurch out for him, and a starry mouse that skittered by seemed to shatter Honeypaw's world. Whimpering, the apprentice crouched, flattening his ears as the starry cats moved closer.

_No! I can't be back here! No! What's going on?! Has StarClan come to-!_

Dread and battering panic seemed to pierce through Honeypaw, and he felt his paws sway beneath him. He felt sick even glimpsing the area he was in- he had never wanted to see an inch of StarClan ever again. He was sure that if he weren't dreaming, he would be hacking and vomiting from distress by now. He was convinced he could feel the tingle of bile in the back of his throat.

"Honeypaw," the smooth voice of an ancient silver cat suddenly floated out into the air, and the tabby's eyes widened as he recognized the ancient spirit. They had been one of the cats to visit the living world to see Mosswillow's kits. "StarClan has tried to reach you for moons."

"P-please! Don't take me away!" Honeypaw cried, feeling as if he were ready to fall over and plead and sob at the StarClan cats' paws. "I've just become a 'paw! Please! Let me-!"

"Silence," the silver cat waved their tail, and Honeypaw's words seemed to evaporate from the tip of his tongue. "Honeypaw- _Sunkit_ , I should say- you have shattered the destiny of the Clans as we know it. Your interference has ruined moons upon moons of planning for this prophecy to come true. The prophecy that you _ruined_."

"...What?" Honeypaw felt as if his mouth was completely dry, as dry as the sand in the training hollow. Every word took significant strength to force out. What was this cat talking about...?

"The real Honeykit was destined to save the Clans from a great disaster!" The silver spirit's voice rose, as if in sheer fury that they could only begin to muster up. "But you... _you_ ruined it. You did _not_ have permission to be reborn into this cat! You've ruined what fate laid out! Do you not understand how much danger we're all in now?!"

Honeypaw felt his heart lurch, and the fur along his spine rose in panic. He didn't understand- what exactly was this cat blaming him for? What prophecy? "But...if it worked, I surely had permission-"

"NO! We cannot control whether a rebirth happens or not!" The silver cat spat, and a few of the other spirits gathered around lashed their tails. "The real Honeykit was meant to save the Clans. And now that you've been reborn into him...you've ruined the prophecy! You've doomed us!"

_I..._

Honeypaw collapsed, his paws trembling so hard he couldn't carry his own weight. The full impact of the spirit's words finally dug its claws into his pelt, and all he could do was helplessly gasp, his inhaling breaths sharp. He...the Honeykit...the _real_ Honeykit was meant to save the Clans? And he...ruined that with his second chance? He felt dread crawl up his spine as he realized what must come next.

"We cannot undo your actions," the silver spirit whispered, sound crackling weakly. "But, we can attempt to mend the slightest of broken strands. You, _Sunkit_ , must take it upon yourself to do what the real Honeykit was destined to do. Save the Clans."

Honeypaw nearly blacked out as wave after wave of shock weaved within his fur, and he barely registered it as he pulled himself to his paws, trembling, eyes locking onto the spirit and the spirits around them. He clenched his teeth, trying to blot out all of this alarming information.

"I just wanted a second chance! I'm not going to do something like _save the Clans_!" Honeypaw cried, desperation heightening his voice pitch. "I'm going to live out this life as I was meant to! Normally! Happily! I've never gotten this chance before, and I'm not going to waste it on some already ruined prophecy! Nothing can make the Clans fall apart! I don't know what you think was going to happen, but I'm not doing something for _StarClan_ when I've finally gotten my chance!"

The silver spirit's glare suddenly morphed into a solmen expression. Shoulders stiffening, they flattened their ears. "We have allowed you to keep your memories. We've allowed you to have a family. We've allowed you to carry on for longer than necessary. We've tried to reach you through dreams, but they've all failed and crashed into horrid visions, I'm sure you know. We've done so much for you, why can't you do this? If you don't, those awful visions you witnessed are only the beginning. So much pain and suffering will follow. You will lose everything."

"I doubt it," Honeypaw hissed, tail beginning to lash. He couldn't believe they were expecting him to follow a prophecy that couldn't possibly be real! "Yes, you've done things for me, like letting me keep my memories...but you let me die in the first place!"

"We couldn't control that. When cats die, it is their time."

"No! I won't do what you want me to! I won't chase after a false prophecy!" Honeypaw cried, feeling familiar blazes of anger rise up within him, wave after wave of the searing fury battering his heart. "Let me have my chance!"

The silver spirit didn't react to his anger. Instead, they tilted their head, glanced at the other spirits around, then stared coldly at Honeypaw, the gaze so freezing it made Honeypaw wince and step back.

"If you do not do what we wish," the spirit finally hissed, tone dripping with venom and hot fury. "Then we will simply take your chance away. We cannot kill you directly, but we can make the circumstances certain enough. You'll have your 'second chance' ripped away in a matter of days."

Honeypaw froze, eyes stretching wide. "You...you can't-!"

"We can," another spirit joined in, thick fur bristling. "Follow StarClan's will. Save the Clans."

"Or we'll stop your heart." A second voice chimed in, laced with such malice Honeypaw shook.

Then, before the tom could protest, he was thrown back into darkness. Thrown into himself, where he shook and cried and sobbed in panic, yowled in his mind from this injustice. He could hardly process all of this information...all he could feel was hot anger. What was going on? How could StarClan do this to him?! How could they make him d-...

Then, with a flash, everything fell away into nothingness.


	9. Frustration

"Honeypaw. Focus."

Honeypaw jerked out of his whirling thoughts, lifting his muzzle and blinking at Hawklily, who was giving him a look that was half stern and half concerned. The honey-gold tabby flicked his ear and nodded faintly, trying his best to focus on what his mentor was telling him. The dilute tortoiseshell's gaze lingered on the apprentice for a few more moments, before she turned and repeated her previous statements.

"That musty laced scent on the breeze is mouse. And..."

The molly's words were drowned out as Honeypaw stared blankly at a rough-barked tree a few fox-lengths ahead of him, his claws mindlessly digging into the leaf litter beneath his paws. The overlapping sounds of the forest- birdsong, squirrel chittering, leaves rustling in the delicate breeze...- he was aware of them all, distantly, but not a single thing stuck with him, leaving his mind blank and focus useless.

The night before, in which StarClan had finally successfully reached Honeypaw, was still as fresh as ever in the tom's mind. It left him faintly trembling, head swirling as he desperately tried to gather all of his strings of thought and roll them all into a fathomable, sensible ball. His mouth and throat were dry and itchy, his muscles were strained with stiffness. He didn't feel anything the moment he had slid open his eyes at the first light of dawn. It was almost like he was a blank, smooth stone by the lakeshore.

Honeypaw could barely manage to process everything that had run through his mind that night. All that he had witnessed and been forced to hear. StarClan expected him to follow through on some kind of _prophecy_ , which Honeypaw doubted the existence of in the first place. What could wipe the Clans out? What could damage them so badly that StarClan had had to rely on the "real Honeykit"? There was nothing that could ruin countless moons of sturdy living by the lake.

Yet, StarClan threatened to ensure he was back in their starry clutches if he didn't follow their will. Deep within his veins, Honeypaw felt a spark of fury and hopelessness, but he was so lost he barely acknowledged the burning sensations of emotion. StarClan wanted to blame him for ruining their "prophecy". They wanted _him_ to fix the supposed problem. As if.

"Honeypaw!" The sharp, scornful mewl broke Honeypaw out of his thoughts again, and he wearily blinked at his mentor, who was lashing her tail and staring at him with equal the amount of scorn that rode upon her tone. The molly took a deep, sharp inhale, then let out the breath slowly. "Did you not get enough sleep last night? You keep spacing out! What's the matter?"

"No, I-" Honeypaw couldn't confide in the concerned molly. He couldn't confide in anyone. Only he alone could know what he knew, and even if he wanted to spill everything, he felt physically incapable. His tongue would refuse to work if he even gave it a single thought. "I'm fine."

Hawklily gave a flick of her ear and padded over to Honeypaw, her tail coming over to rest lightly upon his back, her scornful gaze melting into one of gentle comfort. "Look. I know it's only your second day of being an apprentice. You're not used to your new duties or anything you have to do. But I need you to try to pay attention so we get a good start on your training, okay?"

Honeypaw looked at the molly, his green eyes landing upon her face. She didn't radiate any anger- only a gentler scorn then before, one that was meant to guide him and put his paws in their proper place. Numbly, he nodded. His mentor couldn't control his private storm, but at least she was trying to do what every mentor had to do.

Satisfied, Hawklily padded away and back to her spot among a flattened section of undergrowth. "Alright. Smell that musty scent I mentioned?"

Honeypaw didn't want to do this. He wanted to curl up in his nest and sleep, sleep away everything. Opening his muzzle, he tasted the air, the musty, oak laced scent Hawklily was talking about wafting towards him. It was fresh and bold, and the taste of it helped bring the apprentice further into awareness. A mouse was waiting to be caught. A mouse that would feed Dapplebeam, or Turtlefrost, who had announced she was expecting Birchflight's kits that morning. Or any of his hungry Clanmates.

"Where do you think the smell is coming from?" Hawklily mewled softly, and Honeypaw gingerly stepped forward, drinking in the smell of the rodent. He took a few more steps forward, and found that the scent took a turn and got much bolder. Taking a guess, he hesitantly gestured his tail over to a clump of ferns further down the trail they were lingering by.

"Excellent," Hawklily dipped her head in confirmation, then waved her tail through the air. "See if you can catch it."

"How do..." Honeypaw felt something akin to fatigue make his words fall away into the air, and it took a large effort to finish his sentence. "How do I kill it quickly?"

"Remember training yesterday?" Hawklily sat down, careful not to cause a loud rustle that might alert the mouse that was surely picking around for food among the soft fern leaves. "When you pounce, try to make sure your front paws land on its back. Usually, that breaks the spine easily. If it doesn't, you just have to press fast enough for it to not suffer after you pin it."

Honeypaw did indeed remember practicing with twigs the day before, and, nodding, he forced his paws to move, stepping lightly as he approached the ferns, the mouse scent making his claws itch to pounce. He remembered Hawklily teaching him to step as lightly as possible, as to not let the mouse pick up any vibrations in the ground that would indicate danger. As soon as he was about a fox-length from the lush fern clump, the apprentice slowly fell into the hunter's crouch, making sure he kept his tail hovering in the air and back legs bunched up enough, scooting them closer to his body. Keeping his breathing as light as a crow feather, he slowly pulled himself forward with his front paws, sliding them carefully, delicately, to cause the least amount of vibrations. The closer he got, he began to pick up on the quiet rustling, and the faint squeaks of the mouse as it dug around for any seeds that might have found their way beneath the ferns.

Narrowing his eyes, Honeypaw shoved away his raging thoughts in order to focus on the moment, his body just whiskers away from the ferns. He could see the mouse's tail poke out of the vegetation, and he knew it hadn't yet picked up on his presence. Wriggling his hindquarters and taking a deep breath, Honeypaw sprang up with his hind legs, front paws diving down into the ferns. He felt one paw hit the earth and one paw slam down on the mouse's tail. It let out a shrill shriek, and while Honeypaw scrambled to attempt to pin it, it yanked its tail from beneath his paw and darted away from the ferns. Yelping, Honeypaw charged forward, triyng to keep his focus on the mouse. He had to catch it!

"Honeypaw!" He distantly heard Hawklily call for him, but he kept going, not yet fast enough due to not being used to the forest's terrain. He lept over a small ditch, and swung his paw, whacking into the mouse. Its squeak was cut off as it roughly hit the ground. Panting, Honeypaw hurried over to it, pressing his paw roughly against its spine to swiftly kill it. Heart pounding, he leaned down to grasp the warm body in his muzzle, dragging himself back over to where Hawklily was waiting.

"Good job on catching it!" The molly's mew was tinged with pride, which lifted Honeypaw's spirits a tad as he dropped the mouse, the body thumping quietly against the earth. "You'll get better with your pounces. We have to try to kill things on our first pounce- chasing small rodents like this can alarm the rest of the prey in the area."

"Sorry," Honeypaw felt embarrassment shine through his hazy, clouded thoughts. "I just didn't want to lose it."

"That's a good mindset to have," Hawklily purred, getting to her paws with a soft sigh. "I can tell you're not having the best of days. Let's call it a day, okay? But we're gonna have to train longer than this tomorrow."

Honeypaw gave his mentor a thankful look, then nodded, dipping his head down to scoop the limp mouse into his jaws. With a soft purr, Hawklily turned and began to lead the blank tom back to camp.

\- - -

Honeypaw nestled deep into his nest, staring out the entrance to the apprentices' den with half-lidded eyes. The sunshine was still beaming strongly, and from here he could make out Sandpelt twisting to tug a burr from his limp leg. Grunting, the apprentice closed his eyes, allowing himself to sink into his thoughts.

StarClan was deeply troubling him. He wished they would of left him alone- he missed the rapid excitement that had been flowing through him for the past few days. He wanted to go out and train much longer with Hawklily to get a headstart on his warrior training. Only two days into his apprenticeship and everything was skidding downhill.

Would StarClan really try to take this life away from him? Were they really that cruel? Squirming uncomfortably, the tabby lashed his tail. If the prophecy had really been true, what was he expected to do about it? He wasn't the destined cat! If they wanted him to fix something, they could of been specific! If they weren't specific, then that had to mean they didn't know what "threat" was approaching. Nothing was wrong, surely. But he felt a prickle of fear at the idea of dying again, what was-

"Hey," a shadow suddenly fell over Honeypaw, leaving him squinting and breaking out of his rippling thoughts. Looking up, he saw the cream and white pelt of Milkpaw. "I saw you and Hawklily come back way before your sisters. What's up?"

"Nothing," Honeypaw grunted, lifting his head off of his nest with a twitch of his whiskers. "I'm just tired."

"You don't look tired," Milkpaw tilted his head, eyes scanning Honeypaw's pelt in a way that made the tabby's fur prickle. "You look troubled. Want to go for a walk?"

 _No._ Honeypaw groaned inwardly. He didn't feel like doing anything. He needed time to process StarClan's demands. But at the same time, he didn't want to say no to Milkpaw. The other tom was obviously making an effort to connect with him.

"Sure," Honeypaw heaved himself to his paws, feeling himself sway a bit. "Where to?"

"The lake." Milkpaw turned and began padding out of the den, shaking out his thick furred pelt as he did so. "I can catch something, and you can practice hunting shrews and voles that hang out by the water."

Honeypaw watched the other tom exit the den, and with a soft exhale he arched his spine in a stretch that made his muscles twitch. Shaking each leg in turn, the apprentice followed Milkpaw into the camp clearing.

"Poppy, Yarrowtail, Thorntooth, and Hailbird will go on the evening border patrol, and Frostpool, Briartalon, and Goldensplah will go on hunting patrol. Take Cloudpaw for experience," Ospreyclaw was mewing from a shadowed spot beneath the Highledge, their tail flicking back and forth. The gathered warriors nodded and began to split off into their assigned groups. Cloudpaw's amber eyes stretched wide when Goldensplash beckoned her over. With an excited purr, she jumped to her paws and trotted over to the hunting patrol, eagerness rippling along her pelt.

As Honeypaw and Milkpaw moved along the clearing, Honeypaw shot a longing glance towards Mosswillow, who was sharing a thrush with Turtlefrost. Turtlefrost's tortoiseshell and white splotched pelt was sleek in the dying sunlight, and her belly was already slightly rounder than usual. Honeypaw ached to go join the she-cats and cuddle up with his mother for comfort, but he knew he could never explain his feelings to her.

When the two apprentices got to the thorn tunnel and began to exit the camp, a sudden thrum of paw steps pounded behind them, and two turned to see the dark grey pelt of Juniperwish, the medicine cat's eyes wide and troubled.

"Where are you two going?" The she-cat's gaze dragged over to Honeypaw, her attention latching onto him alone. Honeypaw felt the fur along his back rise, and a twisting sense of discomfort began to crawl beneath his pelt. He still didn't feel comfortable around the medicine cat- Redbark had forever tainted his impression of the cats that were meant to heal their Clanmates.

"Just down to the lake," Milkpaw was visibly irritated as he stared back at the medicine cat, his ears twitching. "We'll be back."

"Honeypaw is just barely an apprentice, he shouldn't be going out without Hawklily," Juniperwish insisted, and she padded just a bit closer, eyes stretching wide. "Honeypaw, it would be wise for you to stay here. I need to talk to you."

Honeypaw swallowed thickly, fear beginning to rage in his belly, bittely chilling like the lake's water. Had StarClan spoke with her? Was she going to _kill_ him because he refused to help out StarClan? Was-

Milkpaw looked beyond Juniperwish's head, and he lashed his tail at the medicine cat, who was stiff and staring at Honeypaw as if she could see into his mind. "The patrols are coming over to leave now. We can't be blocking the entrance. Honeypaw will be fine with me."

Turning, the cream and white tom briskly pushed out of camp. Honeypaw stayed frozen where he was for a moment, then slowly turned and headed out of the thorn tunnel, feeling Juniperwish's gaze burning into his pelt. Giving a full body shudder, the tom ran to catch up with Milkpaw, coming to a slower pace as he pulled up to the tom's side.

"That was peculiar," Milkpaw glanced briefly at Honeypaw, then turned his attention back to the path they were walking upon. "What, are you wanting to be a medicine cat or something?"

"No!" Honeypaw yelped out a little more harshly than he would of like. Swallowing, he lowered his voice. "No, I want to be a warrior."

"Hm." Was all the other apprentice said, and Honeypaw gave a swift lick to his chest, feeling as if he were being pricked with thorns by the uncomfortable silence that followed.

So, instead, the tom looked forward, paws squishing against leaf litter and undergrowth.

The thick forest was being devoured by shadows as the sun began to set, the deep oranges and pinks in the sky beginning to fade to deep blues and pale orchid purples. Honeypaw guessed it would be nightfall by the time the two got back, but he was confident Milkpaw could protect him in the dark. Taking a deep breath, he dove into his own thoughts once more, barely aware of his paws touching the ground.

Seeing Ospreyclaw call together the patrols and send them out, and seeing his Clanmates mold and work together made him realize just how much he belonged- he was another weaving of the Clan, another important life within it. He helped to sustain these cats, and in turn they kept him secure and warm, as did every cat in ThunderClan. StarClan wanted to rip that away from him? Perhaps, if he proved there was nothing threatening the Clans, they would leave him alone.

He wouldn't help them in their false prophecy business. Why rely on one cat if it was true? If the situation was that dire, they would surely rely on many cats!

For the first time all day, Honeypaw felt something twinge within his chest. An ember of confidence. Why try to follow StarClan's will when he could prove them wrong?

Milkpaw stopped abruptly, pelt bushing out in alarm. Honeypaw was thrust out of his thoughts, and he blinked, looking around in the gloom.

"What's the matter?" He whispered, but Milkpaw harshly shoved him with a shoulder, his gaze locked between two towering trees. A flash of a grey tabby coat. And an unfamiliar scent wafting towards the apprentices.

"Intruder," Milkpaw growled, hackles lifting. Honeypaw felt a sharp piercing of alarm go through him, and he stepped back, ears flattening.

_I can't fight!_

Milkpaw glanced back at him briefly, then swung around as the grey tabby emerged from the trees, blue eyes glinting in the moonlight. With a loud hiss, Milkpaw charged towards the cat, kicking up dirt. Honeypaw cried out as the forest broke out in shrieks and yowls as the cream and white tom barreled into the other cat, claws and teeth flashing. The intruder fell to her back with a loud thump, and she shrieked as Milkpaw raked his claws down her belly with his hind legs, keeping his teeth locked on her shoulder.

Honeypaw ducked down low, feeling panic shoot down his spine. Should he get help? He knew he should help Milkpaw, but he didn't know how to fight yet-! Was this one of those rogue intruders Ospreyclaw was worried about?! What was she doing here?

Milkpaw was shrieking and hissing as the she-cat bit into his foreleg. It was clear he was in immense pain, but he kept on kicking and slashing at the she-cat, the scent of blood lifting into the air. Shivering, Honeypaw willed himself to turn tail and flee back to camp, calling for help, but before he could an eruption of yells filled the forest. The border patrol had heard them! Lukewarm relief filled Honeypaw from ears to tail-tip as he caught sight of Poppy, Yarrowtail, Hailbird, and Thorntooth. All four warriors were bristling, and the grey tabby intruder's eyes widened. With a hiss, she squirmed out from beneath Milkpaw and jumped to her paws, claw marks that trickled blood raked down her flanks. Milkpaw was taking heaving breaths, eyes wild with fury as his slashed nose and ear caused dark wellings of blood to roll down his face, clotting in his fur.

The rogue took one sweeping look at the bristling patrol, before stumbling back and pelting off into the dark undergrowth. With a cry, Poppy and Thorntooth threw themselves forward, chasing after her with a chorus of hisses and snarls.

"Milkpaw!" Yarrowtail's brown tabby pelt was bushed, and she leaned forward to sniff at his wounds. The tom had one front paw lifted gingerly, the bite mark the she-cat had left deep and streaming with blood. Honeypaw felt sick as he cautiously moved forward, the disgusting tang of blood making his nose wrinkle.

Hailbird whipped around to face him, his shoulders relaxing as he realized it was just Honeypaw. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, Milkpaw took care of it," Honeypaw stared at the apprentice, feeling a clenching in his chest. He could of helped, had he known how to fight! "Shouldn't we go back to camp? His leg's really hurt."

"Yeah," Yarrowtail lashed her tail, grunting hoarsely. "Another rogue. It'll never end, will it?"

Hailbird's dark grey and freckled pelt was still bristling, but he nodded, going to the other side of Milkpaw. "Lean against me."

As the group of cats began heading back to camp, not able to sit around and wait for Poppy and Thorntooth to catch up, Honeypaw threw uneasy glances over his shoulder. Now he didn't just need to worry about StarClan, but now he needed to worry about these rogues that kept slipping into ThunderClan's territory and starting fights.

Shaking everything free of his mind, the tabby stared forward confidently, his chest burning. He had to train harder and focus when Hawklily took him out to learn. He needed to hurry and get to learning battle moves so that he could protect his Clan!

He didn't have time to worry about false prophecies and dead cats trying to intimidate him.

ThunderClan was more important. And he would make sure that every breath that came with this new life was dedicated to every Clanmate.


End file.
